Boy meets Girl
by JJJJ4
Summary: AU. A not so simple story of first love in highschool. No vampires. Taking a break from the supernatural and trying something different.
1. Boy meets girl

It's always hard to be the new girl in school but it's even harder to be the new girl in high school. I remember when I was in second grade and my dad got a new job. My brother Jeremy and I were the new kids in school but back then friendships were easy to make. You could walk up to anybody and say, "hey wanna play tag." Then boom two minutes later you were best friends with the person for life.

High school was different. Groups were exclusive and unfriendly at times. Walking down the hall right now I feel like I've already made some long life enemies with people I haven't even met. I held tight on to my pink binder as I looked for my locker.

I decided to be low key for the first day of school. I was trying to get by without being noticed today. I have on some nice dark jeans and a loose fitting gray tank top with a brown leather jacket. I couldn't help but have a leather jacket. It was like my security blanket, something I desperately needed nowadays. My parent passed away a month ago in car crash. After some bouncing around my young Aunt Jenna was able to convince social services of her competence. Jeremy wasn't helping the situation at all. He was developing a bad drug habit and a flare for trouble. Sooner or later it's gonna come bite us in the ass.

My locker was unfortunately in the far corner of the locker halls, which made the judgy eyes glued to me even longer and made me late to my first class, History. Tomorrow I would know better but today the nervous smile plastered on my face makes me look like an imbecile as I rush in late to class.

"Glad you could make it, Miss Gilbert." The teacher tells me. At first I thought he knew my name because I was the new girl but I soon recognized the guy as Aunt Jenna's new beau, Ric. His real name was something funny. I think Alaric but he went by Ric.

Of course everyone would forget to tell me that he would be my teacher. I only met the guy once and he seemed nice enough. I just hoped dating my Aunt wasn't going to cause any trouble.

"Hey Ric… I mean Mr. Saltman" I answer before I can put my thoughts in order. Some people giggle in the back. This was going to be a long day.

"It's Saltzman but close enough. Take the empty seat next to Miss Forbes."

I see an empty seat next a pretty blond cheerleader and follow suit. Ric continued to read through the syllabus as I took my seat. I didn't get the point of reading something directly from the paper but I wasn't going to argue against a free class.

"Hey I'm Caroline" the cheerleader tells me with a warm smile

"Elena" I answer and we shake hands

"So you're new here, right?"

"Yea, how'd you guess?"

" Small town. Everybody knows everybody or at least I know everybody."

"Cool" I say not knowing really how to respond.

"Well there's a pep rally today. You should come. It's going to be tons of fun." I could tell right away that this blond cheerleader would be talkative but she was friendly and I wasn't in a position to deny any friends.

"Um, sure. I got nothing else to do."

"Great. You can meet everybody including Stefan."

"Who's Stefan?" I ask and she nods to a boy sitting to the right of us two rows down. As soon as I turn my head, he shyly turns around to face Ric instead. I can't help but smile. The guy was nice looking and it was nice to be admired.

"He's our star quarterback and he was totally checking you out this ENTIRE time."

"Really?" I ask since I hadn't noticed.

"Yup and the guy next to him is my boyfriend Tyler. He plays football too."

Ric made a loud cough to regain our attention.

"Is there anything you would like to share with the class, Miss Forbes?" We both look at each other with huge smiles.

"Umm, nope. I'm good Mr. Saltzman. I was just talking to Elena about school."

"Well good but maybe you could do that outside of class."

"Already got plans" Caroline answered

The guy named Stefan turned around to look at me again. This time I shy away from his penetrating stare.

The class went by fast after that. In my next class, biology, I met a girl named Bonnie who apparently was good friends with Caroline. She seemed to be the more sensible one out of the two. She was also wearing a red and white cheerleading uniform.

The class after was less uneventful and by the time lunchtime came around I was starving. I tried a short cut to the cafeteria but I got lost fast. I ended up by the dumpsters. I could hear some voices as I approached the dumpsters.

"Lunch money now!" I heard someone scream. The voice was low and husky.

I soon noticed that someone had my baby brother up against the wall.

"Hey! Get off my brother" I yelled

The boy turned around swiftly, as my brother struggled against his grip. The first thing I noticed was his eyes. Yes they looked tired and slightly purple underneath but they were a sharpest color of blue I had ever seen.

"Not until he gives me some money." He told me while he looked me over.

"Let him go! I've got some cash." I told him with my chin high, hoping that I seemed confident.

He let go of my brother abruptly and my brother shot off like a rocket.

"Some brother you got there. I wouldn't be surprised if already wet his pants." The boy commented

I pushed eight dollars into the boy's hand. "What do you even need this cash for anyway?"

"Drugs," he said with a smile, "But I'm not gonna get much with this lousy sum of cash."

"Well, that's all my brother had."

"Well if I shook him up too, then I could have had gotten sixteen dollars."

"Well aren't you handy with math."

"I can be handy with a lot things." He said with significant eyebrow movement.

"Get a life asshole."

The guy rolled his eyes and walked away.

…

I was so hungry by my next class that I was squeezing my stomach tightly to keep it from growling but it didn't stop my stomach from being embarrassing. By math class I think my stomach was trying to digest itself. I sat in the farthest corner of the classroom in an attempt to keep my embarrassment to a minimum.

When I saw Stefan come into class I quickly put my book bag on the empty seat next to me before he got any ideas. I was humiliated enough in my last class when my stomach was louder than my soft spoken English teacher. Stefan took a seat far away from me and I was thankful for my quick thinking. Soon all the seats were filled and I took my backpack off the seat next to me. Unfortunately Mr. Blue eyes walked in a few seconds before the bell rang and of course my seat was the only one left.

"Well ain't that sweet, you saved a seat for me." He told me sarcastically

I rolled my eyes. This guy was the bane of my existence right now. My stomach growled embarrassingly as he took the seat next to me.

"You hungry?" he asked

"What do you think?" I asked rhetorically, "You took my lunch money."

I honestly didn't expect what happened next. The guy took out candy bar and placed it guilty on my desk. His face looked like I just told him that someone had died.

I was going to refuse the candy bar but my stomach protested only seconds after. I don't think I've ever eaten a candy bar so fast in my life. I don't even know what kind of candy bar it was, it could have been a snickers bar.

"Sorry" he told me sincerely

His face was so heartbreaking that I couldn't help but say, "S'okay"

"Guess I owe you lunch." He told me with a wink. I couldn't help but smile at the guy who almost beat up my little brother today.

The class started moments later. Staring straight ahead I caught a glimpse of Stefan but he wasn't staring at me. He was staring down the blue eyed guy.


	2. Girl meets other boys

**Starting where I left off, math class….**

I think something went wrong when they transferred my transcripts because apparently whoever is in charge put me in advanced placement calculus. The first day was dreadful. The teacher didn't read over the syllabus or have us introduce ourselves, he simply said, "Good afternoon everyone my name Mr. Dial, open up your books to chapter 2, we're starting with limits."

What ever happened to chapter 1? Some people need introduction chapters. Someone meaning me. I was rushing to write down every detail of Mr. Dial's lecture when I looked over to my right and realized that Mr. Blue eyes wasn't writing anything down. Cocky math genius who doesn't need class or super slacker who had gotten into this class by some miracle?

I got my answer when Mr. Dial started doing example problems on the board and Mr. Blue eyes was answering the problems on a piece paper faster than the teacher could explain. Somehow this added fuel to my fire. This guy irked me even more.

As soon as the bell rang signaling school dismal, Mr. Blue eyes shot out of the room. I never got a chance to learn his name or maybe exchange that lunch for a free tutoring session.

I felt I had the most stuff to lug around when I also tried to shoot out of class and ended being the last one out. In the rush I was trying to be in, I hit my books against the threshold of the door and all my books fell on the ground.

I started to pick them up when suddenly I had someone helping me. I looked up to see Stefan.

"Hey I'm Stefan Salvatore." He said sweetly

"Elena" I responded when he gave me my book. I had a strong urgency to look away from his penetrating stare but force myself not to.

"Thanks for the help," I added

"No problem, would you like me to help you carry those books." He said pointing at my three tier book stack.

"Umm… No I'm good now." I said and realized quickly that it was the wrong thing to say when Stefan's face started to look like a sad puppy who was told not to play with his favorite toy.

"Well then can I walk you to your locker at least?" he asked. I don't know why it took me so long time to answer this question but apparently I took too long when he teased, "I don't have to beg, do I?"

I cracked a smile and soon we were walking down hall together. The halls were still crowded with people and it was much more hectic than this morning but oddly no one was crashing into me anymore. It was kinda like I had an invisible force field around me as I made my way down to my locker. I finally realized the cause was the person standing next to me.

The judgy eyes were gone. Some people even looked like they were admiring me. I must have gotten lost in the sensation because I soon heard Stefan say, "Elena?"

"Hm…" I answered being plucked out of my thoughts

"Did you hear my question?" he asked with a smile

"O sorry no, what was it?" I said slightly embarrassed from my lack of common courtesy.

"What do think of mystic falls here so far?"

"O…. I like it. It's nice." I responded. I don't why but it felt so awkward talking to this guy. The conversation wasn't flowing smoothly. Besides the awkward pauses, there was no funny or teasing banter.

"Are you coming to the pep rally, afterschool?"

"Umm… yea. I promised this girl Caroline I would."

"Caroline Forbes?"

"Yea, do you know her?" asking only to keep the conversation going. I knew very well they knew each other.

"Only since we were diapers."

"That close?"

"More like everybody has seen everybody here in diapers."

Finally we got to my locker. He got a little too close for comfort before he backed off a smidge.

"So this is my locker." I announced already turning the knob on my lock.

"Well see you at the pep rally," he said just before he turned to leave but before he left he turned around again and said, "Just be careful with Damon."

"Damon? Who's Damon?" I asked still trying to decipher my combo.

"Damon Salvatore, my cousin, we have the same last name because our fathers are brothers."

I smile in confusion and start to put some books way, "Still not ringing any bells."

Stefan looks at me dumbfounded, "The guy who sat next to you math class."

"Mr. Blue eyes?" I said without thinking. My cheeks got slightly flushed

"Umm… yea. Be careful with him. We might be cousins but he's got a pretty bad reputation around here… Especially with girls" and with that Stefan left.

…

I called Aunt Jenna before heading over to the gym for the pep rally. She was excited to see me get involved so quickly. Apparently Jeremy had called her just minutes before to tell her how much he hated this school. Aunt Jenna was on her way to pick him up and told me Ric was going to be at the pep rally too. She suggested I catch a ride with him. I was hoping I would only have to use him as a last resort.

As soon as I walked into the gym I saw Bonnie and Caroline sitting on the first bench of the bleachers. They were sitting next to all their cheerleading friends but they still called me over.

"Hey Elena!" Caroline squealed. She was obviously excited about the pep rally as she wiggled her pom-poms. Bonnie waved hello with a warm smile.

"Hey you guys." I said over the school band's music. I sat myself between the girls and put my backpack on the floor slightly in front of me.

"You made it. How was your first day? Who did you meet? Who are your teachers?" Caroline rambled

"Breathe Caroline. Breathe" Bonnie told her and turned her attention to me, "Sorry, Caroline just loves the first day of school."

Caroline seemed unashamed with a beaming smile.

"It's cool. Umm let's see…my first day was nice. I met officially met Stefan. And my teachers are Mr. Saltzman, Mr. Dial…" I was in midst of naming my teachers when some guy tripped over my backpack.

"What the Fuck!" the blonde guy yelled as he picked himself up. I recognized him from my English class.

Quickly Caroline put herself slightly in front of me. "It was an accident Niklaus. Calm down" she said with newfound strain in her voice. There was a brunette guy next to him but he just stood behind him in silence, looking almost bored.

Niklaus's face didn't falter in rage. "She shouldn't leave her shit lying around" He told Caroline roughly and pointed at me.

"O bite me Niklaus. You should watch where you're going." Caroline rebutted. Bonnie put her hand on my shoulder. She must have seen me scared. Then a crowd of football players came behind the two guys. The first football player I recognized as Caroline's boyfriend.

"We got problem here Klaus?" Tyler said with a stern voice.

The brunette boy next to Klaus finally moved to grab his friend's shoulder. "No problem here." The brunette guy announced as he looked at the crowd of uniformed football players. It looked like steam could be coming out of Klaus's ears when the brunette guy pulled him away.

When I was able to find my voice. I finally asked, "Who were they?"

"The Mikaelson brothers, they both play for our hockey team. They're just bullies. The brunette one is Elijah, he's more level headed. Klaus might have tried to take on the entire football team" Bonnie answered

"You guys okay?" Stefan asked from behind Tyler

"They didn't give you too much trouble did they?" Tyler added

"No, we're fine. Right, Elena?" Caroline said finding her smile once again.

"Yea, I'm good." I answered flexing my hands because they had been balled up in fists a little while ago.

The rest of the pep rally went by smoothly after the incident. When Caroline and Bonnie got up to do some routines, the football players kept me company. I learned Tyler had a very open and nice personality. Maybe that's why Caroline and he mixed so well.

Stefan kept quiet since Tyler hogged most of my attention. Tyler seemed to enjoy the first day of school almost as much as Caroline.

When the rally was winding down, Stefan was the only one to offer me a ride. I guessed it was because Caroline was conspiring to get us together as quickly as possible. She seemed to be queen bee at this school.

I kindly declined his offer because in reality my new house was only three blocks down. And after a day full of getting to know people and answering tons of questions I wanted to be alone for once.

…

I walked out of the school grounds as the sun was starting set. Everyone filed out of the parking lot quickly. I enjoyed the peace for as long as I could have it. Unfortunately the silence didn't last long at all.

A block down I saw the Mikealson brothers. Both of them were smoking in the corner.

When I got close enough, Klaus got in my way. "Well, well looky here Elijah. It's the girl from the pep rally" Klaus told his brother

I tried to ignore them by keeping my head down and continuing to walk.

"Hey I'm talking to you!" he screamed when I paid him no attention.

"Calm down Klaus" Elijah said leaning on the metal fence behind him.

"I'm just talking to the girl" Klaus said when he grabbed my arm

"Let go of me!" I told him and tried to get him off of me.

"Or what? I don't see your little football players here anymore."

Klaus pulled me and slammed me against the fence. My books fell. Elijah didn't move an inch, he simply rolled his eyes and looked bored again.

Then a voice came out of nowhere. It was a small voice, definitely a girl's voice. The voice came from a band girl who had very distinctive gothic look to her. She was a petite Asian girl on a bicycle.

"Let her go Klaus."

"Or what?" he challenged

"Or I'll tell my brother!"

To this Elijah moved. This girl's brother was apparently someone you didn't want to mess with.

Klaus turned his attention to the small girl and pushed her off her bicycle.

"Tell him." Klaus told the girl before Elijah grabbed him.

"Sorry Anna. I got him." Elijah added and half dragged his brother around the next corner. I couldn't hear too well but I thought I heard Elijah say, "You've got a death wish don't you?"

I helped the small girl up. The bicycle had tumbled on top of her, and her giant tuba was making her look like turtle on its back. "You okay?" I asked when I pulled her up.

"I should be asking you the same question." She told me as she picked up her giant tuba.

"I'm good thanks for helping."

"No problem. Those guys are just a bunch of jerks."

"Your brother must be something to make them run like that."

To that she had a huge smile on her face, "Yea he is. They're gonna regret pushing me down like that"

I smiled at her feisty attitude, "Which way are you heading?" I asked

"Just one block. My brother is gonna be freaking out if I don't get there soon." She said getting on her bike quickly, "Nice to meet you…. ummm o what's your name?"

"Elena" I answered

She sped off quickly and waved bye, "See ya later, Elena"

"Bye" I yelled back and hustled to get home myself. Mystic Falls was some strange place.

* * *

**I know this chapter wasn't very Delena at all and may have been confusing but bear with me until the next chapter which will be up fairly soon. I wrote alot so the updates will come fast at first then slowly decrease in speed as i write more.**


	3. Girl meets kids

When I got home and Aunt Jenna asked about my day, I didn't tell her about the Mikealson brothers or getting my lunch stolen. I just smiled and told her about my potential new friends Caroline and Bonnie.

She was glad someone had a good day since Jeremy was currently locked in his room with the music blasting. I rushed upstairs quickly to check on my brother.

When I opened his door he was next to his window smoking what I could only guess was weed.

"Hey Jer, how was your day?" I asked ignoring the pungent smell.

"How do you think it was" he spat out viciously

"Don't get mad, I'm just checking up on you." I said calmly.

"Well thanks Saint Elena. Now you can go back downstairs to Aunt Jenna and feel moral about your good deed for the day."

I rolled my eyes and didn't bother to mention the Damon incident. My brother would probably never want me to mention it ever again since I sorta rescued him. I wished my brother and I had a better relationship but ever since our parents died these were our normal conversations. This was amongst the nicer ones.

I wish we could lean on each other because I desperately needed someone to lean on. But everybody around me was new and I had to be strong for Aunt Jenna who worried about us constantly. I closed Jeremy's door and entered my room to finish up some homework. Math was impossible, so I went to bed mad.

….

The next morning, Aunt Jenna made us late to our first class because she wasn't a great morning person. Ric smiled at me as I entered class late for the second time. I didn't tell anyone about my confrontation with the Mikaelson brothers. I figured it was over and done with.

I actually got to eat lunch today. Partly because I packed my own lunch, and partly because I didn't see Damon Salvatore. I sat with the cheerleaders and some football players. They were nice enough and they kept the conversation light.

I walked into English class feeling like a normal person again until I saw the back of Klaus's head. Then suddenly my stomach dropped.

I tried to sit far away from him but the best I could do was sit behind him. He turned to look at me before I took my seat. I could see he had some fresh new bruises, one on his eye and another on his cheek. Both of them were a dark purple. His lip was also split open. I guessed Anna's brother had come through on her promise.

Klaus gave me a mischievous grin when he looked at me. O great, I think I really did make an enemy out of him.

I ran out of English class like a sprinter, straight into Math class.

To my surprise Damon was amongst the early crowd. I don't know what compelled me to sit next to him but I told myself it was because of my homework.

"Hey Damon" I said when I took an empty seat next to him.

"Hey…" He answered possibly trying to recall my name, but I hadn't given it to him. I noticed then that I wasn't supposed to know his name.

"Umm… Elena. My name is Elena. Your cousin told me your name yesterday."

"Stefan told you?"

"Yea and I saw that you were pretty good at math yesterday and I was wondering if you could help me with problem 14"

He looked at me strangely and with tight smile. I must have sounded like a complete lunatic I told myself.

"So this isn't social call, you want to use me" he commented.

I smiled, "Do I have to beg?" I asked using the same line that broke the ice for Stefan and me.

Damon cracked a bigger smile. "Fine, show me the problem."

I smiled a wide goofy smile while I took out my book and notebook. That's when I noticed a huge bag of ice on his hand. He removed the bag to show me a recurring mistake I was making and I noticed his right hand was purple.

"O my god! What happened to your hand?" I asked

He looked down at his hand as if he hadn't noticed it until now.

"O I was in fight" he told me as if it were nothing, "If you think this is bad you should see the other guy."

And then I did picture the other guy. I was guessing it was the Klaus guy. Something struck me as odd since I thought Anna's brother had beaten Klaus up. I didn't ask Damon any further questions since Mr. Dial came in and started the lecture quickly.

The math class went by in the same manner as the last. I was lost and Damon was probably a genius. Then by the end of class Damon was running out the door again. I chaotically grabbed all my stuff and tried to follow him out the door to ask him about his fight.

"Wait up Damon." I told him and he stopped to let me catch up. While he waited for me Anna came up to him.

"Big Bro!" She yelled, "Did you get him good?" She was in full goth mode now without the band uniform.

I was guessing they were stepbrother and stepsister. Or maybe half brother and half sister. They didn't look anything alike.

"Yeah I got him good" Damon said, raising his right hand proudly. Then Anna caught a glimpse of me.

"Hey Elena!" Anna exclaimed and I waved hello back.

"You know her?" Damon asked his little sister

"Yeah, she was the girl, I was telling you about! Remember. Ugh you never listen!" Anna said lightly scolding with her brother.

"Well you talk too much" he teased

Anna turned her full attention to me. "You know he beat Klaus up for you too. He told me that. He did it for the both of us."

"Well then I should thank my knight in shining armor." I responded

"Well to tell you the truth. I didn't know that she was talking about you at the time. I didn't know your name." he told me matter-of-factly.

Anna rolled her eyes, "He means that it was his pleasure to knock out Klaus for you."

I smiled at both of them, "Well thanks any way."

Stefan and Tyler came into picture in that second. "Hey Elena, we're going to eat burgers at the Grill. Wanna come?" Tyler asked

Stefan only nodded in acknowledgment of his cousins and smiled at me. Damon and Anna nodded back. Tyler seemed to ignore them completely.

Damon wrapped his arm around Anna and announced "Well we have to get home. See you tomorrow in class."

"See you guys," I told them and then swiftly agreed to go the grill.

…

I thought going to the Mystic grill would be a big group thing but I noticed quickly that it was trap. A double date kinda trap. Which if you ask me those kinda traps are the worst kinda traps.

Tyler and Caroline kept the mood light but even they could tell there was an obvious awkwardness between Stefan and I. So when Caroline needed to go to the bathroom, I quickly followed girl code.

Caroline just went in to touch up her make up.

"So what do you think about Stefan?" she asked in front of the mirror.

"He's nice." I answered

"Just nice? Are you planning on friend zoning him?" She asked astonished

"Umm… I don't know. I just don't think we have much chemistry."

"Well I heard he wants to ask you to the homecoming dance this weekend." Caroline gossiped

"Well… I wouldn't say no. He'd be a nice date."

"Good! I'll tell Tyler you gave Stefan the green light!" she squealed. She was definitely Team Stefan but in reality there really wasn't any other team playing.

As soon we were finished eating, Tyler suggested frozen yogurt. I was desperately trying to keep this a non-date so I checked the amount of cash I had. All my bills had small smiley faces on them. This was Aunt Jenna's doing. She called it fun money. I had enough for a small yogurt since I had been frugal all day with my packed lunch.

…

As we walked into the frozen yogurt place I only saw a man with three kids at the counter. It wasn't until a second later that I realized one of the kids was Anna. Then the man turned around and I realized he was Damon.

The two kids squealed when they saw Stefan.

"Stefan!" the eight yearish boy yelled and came to hug Stefan. The little girl was on Damon's shoulders. She was possibly four. I didn't think they could be Damon's kids since that could possibly mean he was a father at fourteen and ten. I guessed he was eighteen.

I walked over to Damon and Anna to say hi, nobody followed me. Stefan hugged the kid and joined Tyler and Caroline at the condiment section. They all seemed to dislike Damon or possibly Anna or both.

"Hey Damon hey Anna" I said with a wave

"Hey Elena, fancy meeting you here." Anna said cheerfully. Her personality didn't fit her clothes very well since she wore only black but was always in a good, almost cheerful mood.

Damon was paying for two yogurts while the little girl on his shoulders chanted. "Ice Cream! Ice cream!"

Then I noticed the distinctive happy faces on the dollar bills, it was my "fun money". Damon was using the money he stole from me to pay for frozen yogurt.

Damon gave the first pink frozen yogurt to the little girl on his shoulders and the little boy came flying by to grab his.

"Thanks Damon!" the little boy squealed and gave Damon's legs a big hug. Damon was quiet tall.

"Hey Elena" Damon said with a small smile.

"Hi Ewena!" the little girl squealed with the first bite ice cream. In her excitement she spilled some of her ice cream on Damon's head.

"O Effy. You got some ice cream on your brother." Anna said as she reached for the little girl. The little girl had a strong resemblance to Damon. They both had the same eyes and dark hair.

Anna pulled the girl down and grabbed the eight year old's hand as she made her way down to a booth.

Damon was happily wiping some of the ice cream off his hair.

"Let me help you with that." I offered and he bent his neck as I started to clean, "So those are your brothers and sisters."

"Yea pretty much. You know Anna. The little girl is Ephraim but everyone calls her Effy and the little boy is Ezekiel but everyone calls him Eazy."

I finished cleaning him up and he thanked me. Then he made his way down to the booth. Then I noticed that Ezekiel didn't look very much like anyone at all. He had a darker complexion than his brother or his sisters. He looked to be Hispanic.

…

When we sat down to eat. I couldn't help but have a wandering eye. I noticed that both Damon and Anna never bought a frozen yogurt even though I saw Anna mesmerized by the condiment counter.

I was paying such close attention to Damon and his family that I felt as if I was having yogurt with them instead.

Damon was telling Anna that she shouldn't take so much of Effy's ice cream. Effy argued that she wanted give Anna more. Eazy kept offering Damon some his yogurt but Damon made up some excuse about eating too much at lunch to take another bite. I heard Anna sigh and I was betting she was rolling her eyes. Damon was definitely lying.

They left faster than us and I was finally able to rejoin the conversation with group I actually came with. The conversation ranged from classes to celebrities to tv shows to sports and finally we were out the door.

Caroline and Tyler walked two strides in front of Stefan and me.

"So you met all my cousins today." He told me when the silence between us became almost deafening.

"Sorta, not officially but yeah they seemed nice." I answered, trying not to explode with questions

"Yea I just wish they had better role models. Damon is always getting himself into fights and stealing. And I swear Anna worships the devil."

I had been neutral about Stefan until this moment. But with that comment alone my opinion of him dropped ten degrees. I was absolutely certain Anna never worshipped the devil and I had only met her a handful of times.

"I'm SO sure she doesn't, Stefan." I said very defensively

Stefan shrugged and continued to talk about his family, "Well my uncle isn't a prime example of a parent either."

I was about to ask why but I figured I would get the wrong perception of a person I never met from him. The rest of the night was filled with awkward silences until I got home.

I quickly got in my room and began to write in my diary. There was something different about one side of the Salvatore family and I was curious to find out their secrets.

**Thanks for reading I hope this chapter has you curious like Elena.**


	4. Super private meets Curiosity

The next day I was actually early to my History class. Caroline gave me a small applause for arriving on time and I rolled my eyes in return.

"What? I heard positive feedback is great way to encourage good habits." She told me sarcastically

"Hey! Both times were not my fault" I defend myself halfheartedly

"Denial will only hinder your progress Elena."

I rolled my eyes at her faux lecture.

Caroline always came to school looking like she had all the time in the world in the mornings. Today she had her hair in curls but she kept her make up light. She had on a nice green flowy shirt with some long thin gold necklaces, paired with designer jeans and a cute pair of heels.

I looked at my blue shirt and noticed it was slightly wrinkled and then looked at my shoes, which were just comfortable not at all cute. If I didn't have naturally pin straight hair, I would possibly look like a mess.

"That's a nice shirt Caroline" I complimented

"Thanks!" she said with 100 watt smile, "So what are going to do now that you're settled in school."

"What do you mean?" I asked taking out my notebook.

"Well are you going to play a sport or join a club or something. Maybe be cheerleader or be a cheerleader?" she joked

"Well I did cheer at my old school" I offered and she squealed like she always did when she was excited.

"But I thought tryouts were in the summer?" I asked

"Pshh. I'm team captain and what I say goes. You're practically a cheerleader already. Tryout after school today at the football field."

I smiled nervously, "Umm… sure."

"Great!"

By lunch time everyone was talking to me about joining cheerleading. I smiled falsely. I mainly did cheerleading because mother was big on it. I walked away from my lunch table and found myself next to the dumpsters again. I should have left when I heard Damon's exasperated voice but curiosity kept me bounded to the spot.

He was on the phone arguing with someone.

"You're kidding me right?" He told the person on the phone, "I have work today…. Anna has a recital… I swear I can get you the money… just give a day… I'll pay you double…"

It sounded like the person on phone hung up on him. He kicked the air a few times before he noticed my presence.

"What are you doing here?" He asked

I noticed then that it was a private call for him. He went out of his way to be isolated from the school and here I was intruding. I shouldn't have been so curious. "I just needed to get away." I said

He breathed out a long breath and stormed out. He didn't bother talking to me in math class either. I had a feeling he didn't want me anywhere near his personal life. It was clear then as it should have been from the beginning, that Damon Salvatore was a super private person.

…

When school ended Caroline let me borrow some of her clothes for try-outs. Her clothes felt expensive when I put them on. My workout clothes consisted of old clothes I wouldn't bother wear outside of the house anymore.

I was the last cheerleaders out of the locker room because I was last to arrive. I took longer in the locker room to admire some of the trophies on display. This school was big on cheerleading. They were headed for nationals soon. I really didn't want to be a cheerleader but it felt like my old life when I thought about joining the team and that made me happy.

When I stepped out I saw Damon talking privately to Stefan. I noticed they were arguing so I quickly hid behind the wall before either of them spotted me. The door to the locker room had locked behind me so I was stood my ground and decided to let them leave before I headed down to the football field. I didn't want to make the same mistake twice on the same day.

"Stefan come on. I rarely ask you for this favor." Damon pleaded.

"It's been twice this month Damon. I can't keep skipping practice to take care of your brother and sister. Where's Anna anyway?" Stefan responded

"She has a really important recital and my boss already has me on a tight leash. One more no-show and he fires me."

"Damon, I'm sorry but I have practice." Stefan told him and walked toward the football field.

Damon slammed his fists on the wall several times before I came out of hiding space. I couldn't help it, he needed help.

"You again? Seriously are you stalking me" he accused

"Only accidently." I told him in teasing tone.

Damon rolled his eyes and was about to storm off again when I said, "Wait!"

He stopped but didn't turn around. "What do you want?"

"You need babysitter right? I've got time" I said without much thought.

He turned around with a desperate look on his face. He was staring me down like I was his archenemy. Then he broke the silence. "I don't take charity." He told me

"I'm not offering you charity. You beat up Klaus for me. A favor for a favor." He almost broke into a smile but then it looked like something crossed his mind

"It has to be at your house" he told me sternly

"What?" I asked not understanding

"If you babysit my brother and sister then it has to be at your house. Anna will pick them in two hours. She's always on time."

"O okay," I told him. I didn't bother asking why. I had feeling if I ever wanted to know anything about Damon it would have to be on his terms.

"Come on. I'll drive you. You don't have car right?" he asked with urgency

Something Anna must have told him. I nodded and quickly followed him. He didn't give me time to change out of Caroline's clothes but I texted Caroline that I had an emergency.

She texted back that it was okay but I should come prepared tomorrow.

…

His car wasn't much and on the car ride he didn't say much. I thought several times of starting up a conversation but the car ride was five minutes long with his crazed driving.

"I'll be back in 10 minutes," he told me when he dropped me off.

"Okay."

Nobody was home yet and I wondered why. So I texted Jeremy and then texted Aunt Jenna that I was already home. Before Damon got back I had some snacks and juices out on counter. I was looking out the window to spot him. Damon looked like a dad with Effy on his back and Eazy holding his left hand. He was carrying a bag in the other hand.

When he rang the doorbell I saw he looked nervous from my window. I quickly went to open the door.

"You're not some psychopath are you?" was the first thing he asked me.

I burst into laughter, "No I'm not."

"Cause my brother and sister are everything to me." He said with true sincerity.

"I'm will take very good care of them Damon. And treat them as if they were my own flesh and blood."

Damon gave me huge smile that I had never seen. He had me smiling wide in return.

"Okay so effy is allergic to…" he said taking effy off his back.

The little one responded, "I'm allergic to strawberries." She said it in a cute kid voice.

"Eazy, well he's easy to take care of. Right?" he asked his brother

"Yup" Eazy responded and smiled.

Damon handed me the bag. "There is a change of clothes for both. An epi pen for Effy. Some toys and some of their favorite snacks."

"Okay I got it." I said taking mental notes.

Damon looked like he was hyperventilating for a moment. "Umm… what else. So you use an epi pen by.."

"I got it Damon. My brother is allergic to nuts."

"O good. I mean not good that he has the allergies, I mean good you know how to use it."

"Just go Damon. I got this, get to work." I said handing him a small piece of paper

"What's this?"

"My number"

"O Okay thanks Elena. Eazy knows mine by heart" he told me before he said his goodbyes to his siblings.

He shot off into his car in a sprint. My guess was that he was already late.

…

The two kids smiled at me as my eyes went wide.

"Hey, I'm Elena." I told them both.

The girl looked like a bubbly child. She smiled shyly in return. She looked just like Damon but her hair curled. I doubted Damon spent his mornings straightening his hair. The little boy was just playing with his hands and refused to look me in the eye.

"Okay so why don't we look at what Damon has for us?" I asked them and walked them to the living room.

I laid out the things Damon had packed on coffee table. The kids looked at all the stuff in awe.

The girl started to jump in glee. "I so happy" she told me. A frown would never look right on this small little girl.

The little boy quietly grabbed some of his toys and started to play on the couch.

I smiled nervously again. Effy had one of her dolls in her hand and came walking towards me. "Ewena play with me, play with me!" she chanted. So I did. I had never been so happy to play dolls.

Within twenty minutes the ice was completely broken. We were all playing a game of make believe. Effy was beautiful princess trapped in the castle. Eazy was the brave knight who had to save her. And I was the giant dragon. Giant because I towered over both of them. I roared and chased them around the room. We took some snack and juice breaks but these kids never seemed to tire.

After a round of fake dueling, Eazy saved the princess and defeated the dragon. The doorbell rang when I dropped dead.

I got up to get the door.

Eazy argued, "Hey you're supposed to be dead."

I laughed, "I am. But now I'm a walking zombie"

"O noooo." Effy exclaimed with a small hand on each cheek.

I went to answer the door. It was Jeremy.

"Hey Elena." He said and began walking up to his room. Jeremy was always forgetting keys. Then the two kids appeared and he saw the living room with pillows thrown all over the place.

"Ummm… When did we become a makeshift daycare?"

"ello!" Effy yelled

Jeremy laughed and came down the stairs. "Hey what's your name?" he asked crouching down to her level. Eazy behind me due to his shyness.

"My name is Ephraim but nobody calls me that." She said like the precocious kid she was.

"Well what do they call you?"

"EFFY!" she said with arms in the air

Jeremy laughed, "Where did you get these kids?"

"Umm a favor for a friend." I answered. I didn't think mentioning Damon was a good idea.

Jeremy shrugged, "Well Aunt Jenna just bought ice cream" he told the kids.

Both of the kid's eyes went wide. The promise of ice cream gave Eazy the courage to come out from behind me.

"Who wants some?" Jeremy asked

"I do, I do" They both said and followed him into the kitchen.

By the time I got to the kitchen both of their faces were covered with ice cream.

"So what's your name?" Jeremy asked the little boy

"Eazy" the little boy responded with the Popsicle still in his mouth.

Jeremy nodded and popped an ice cream in to his own mouth, "Cool name". The comment made Eazy smile. I thought Eazy smile was super cute because his two front teeth were missing.

The doorbell rang moments later. This time it was person that I was expecting, Anna.

"Hey Elena. Thanks a bunch!" She said as she walked into my new house. Her eyes lingered on everything in the house.

"No problem" I responded leading her to the kitchen

"Nice house." She commented

"Thanks but it's my Aunts."

"Still nice."

As Anna and I walked into the kitchen, Jeremy suddenly straightened up.

"Anna? These are your brothers and sisters?" Jeremy asked incredulously

Anna smiled, "Yea, what are you doing here?"

Jeremy half laughed, "I live here"

"Your Elena's brother?"

Jeremy nodded, he was clearly nervous around Anna.

As I grabbed the supplies Damon had given me, Anna herded her siblings out of the kitchen. Anna said thanks a billion times before she left.

Jeremy was cleaning up the living room when I came back.

"You should have told me they were Anna's siblings" he told me as he nudged me on the shoulder

I laughed, "Ooo does someone have a crush?"

Jeremy's face turned red. We spent of the rest of the evening watching TV together. It wasn't anything big and we didn't talk much but still it was nice to have this time with my brother.

**Thanks for the reviews!**


	5. Good girl meets bad girl

**Starts off a bit slow but I had more fun with this chapter than the last.**

The next day I woke up in good spirits. When I was dressed and ready, I woke up my still sleeping Aunt Jenna and told her that Jeremy and I were walking to school. She waved bye and went back to bed. Since we had no idea how long it would take we started our journey early and got there early. I brought Jeremy along for two reasons. One we seemed to be in better terms and two, I was embarrassingly scared to bump into the Mikaelson brothers.

I spotted Bonnie immediately after entering the school and waved bye to my brother. Bonnie was standing by her locker next to another cheerleader named Wendy.

"Hey Bonnie, hey Wendy," I began

"Hey Elena, who was that boy you were with?" Wendy asked. She was known for being straight to the point. Bonnie smiled and waved hello. Her cheeks were slightly flushed

"My brother… my LITTLE brother." I emphasized, "You're not interested in him are you?"

"I'm not but someone was asking about him" Wendy said eyeing Bonnie. She smiled wickedly while Bonnie shot her a death stare. Wendy slowly walked away and waved bye when she saw her boyfriend.

I smiled awkwardly at Bonnie. I was surely not going to be Jeremy's pimp…. I mean… not that Bonnie wanted to get in bed with him…. Or ... Ugh this is why a sibling should not be forced into another sibling's love life…. It just gets messy.

"I just thought he looked cute Elena" Bonnie said as she feigned reading today's biology assignment.

I smiled, "Well that's fine… I just… I just don't want to be in the middle of it."

"Well I wouldn't do that to you." Bonnie told me but she never told me she wasn't interested when she found he was LITTLE brother. We talked about last night's biology homework before she told me she had go meet up with Caroline before school began, so I went to my locker when she left me.

Sometimes I do wish I was walking next to Stefan whenever I walked through the halls. There were always people bumping into me when he wasn't there. I let a loud and relieved sigh when I finally saw my locker but two seconds later I did a face plant on the floor.

Someone had pushed me from behind and it wasn't by accident from what I could tell. All I could see were a pair of heels when I looked up from the ground. I pushed myself off the floor to sit on my knees and look at the culprit.

She was a girl I had never seen. She had crazy long curly brown hair and an olive complexion. She looked like…. Well she looked like me. Except maybe her eyes were smaller. I've been told I have big doe eyes. Which makes me think I look like a deer caught in headlights but I don't dwell on it because I like them. Also her face looked longer.

"What was that for?" I asked and then saw the two men flanking her. It was the Mikaelson brothers. I saw Klaus first. His bruises were starting to mellow and become a greenish color. Then I saw Elijah. He had bruises too. Had freakin' Damon Salvatore taken them both on? And apparently won?

"I was just welcoming you to Mystic Falls. I see you've already met my brothers. I'm Katherine" She said with wicked smile. She tried to looking innocent by twirling her hair.

I pushed myself off the floor to stand up fully. In heels she looked taller than me.

"O-kay, well I'm Elena." I said gently pushing her with both hands. She tumbled backwards a bit but her brothers caught her. She only tumbled out of surprise. Klaus seemed to be enraged. Katherine held both back.

"Do you know who you're messing with?"

"Apparently three bullies who won't leave me alone and my daddy always told me when they push you, you push back."

A strange face came across Katherine, one that I can't fully explain but felt like she had a loaded gun pointed at my head and was preparing to shoot.

"From what I hear, your daddy's already dead." She said spitefully. I don't know what came over me in that exact moment but a second later I found myself pulling Katherine's hair.

"Get her off of me!" she yelled at her two brothers who looked dumbfounded. Elijah grabbed me by the waist and Klaus grabbed her by the waist. They tried to pull us apart but the action only helped me pull harder. We had a small crowd around us moments later. Then Ric came to break us apart.

"Elena! Let her go!" he told me. Those words were like splash of cold water, bringing sense back into my head. I let go of her hair and she gave me a look that could kill. Klaus held on tight to her as Elijah let me go.

Ric shook his head disapprovingly at me as he announced, "Everybody disperse! there's nothing else to see here."

The crowd of students awed but followed orders. "Detention afterschool both of you." He told us

…

The news was everywhere by the time I got to class. Some rumors were greatly exaggerated. People asked if I really did pull out all of her hair. No. Others asked me where I learned to box. Never did. Some people even asked if I left sorry she was in hospital now. I only pulled her hair!

By lunchtime I wasn't sitting anywhere near my usual spot. If they thought joining cheerleading was newsworthy then I cringed at the thought of sitting with them today. Instead I travelled to the south end of the cafeteria and out the door. I heard a rumor some people ate lunch outside.

Most of the people out here looked like outsiders. I was relieved to find Anna outside with a group of her friends. Most of her friends liked the color black. Truthfully I always wondered where she sat. She called me over as soon as she saw me.

"Hey Elena!"

"Hey Anna"

"It's only your first week and you're already making headlines." She gleamed

I rolled my eyes, "I'm so ready for new news". I took the seat on a bench while she continued to sit on the table next to it.

She laughed, "Well I'm glad you did it."

"Why? You don't like Katherine?"

"Well let's just say that Kat is an acquired taste and I have never been able to swallow. I just spit her out."

I laughed wholeheartedly, "Well who wouldn't?" I asked rhetorically.

Jeremy came to join us on the table. I never saw him at lunch, and now I know why. His crush on her was totally showing but somehow he didn't seem ashamed to show it.

"What are we talking about?" He asked as he crunched down on some chips. Anna took some chips from the bag without asking as if it was completely natural or normal. Jeremy didn't seem to mind. I was guessing they had some sort of friendship going on.

"Your sister finally met Katherine."

"Katherine? O you mean Damon's girlfriend?" He said. My head spun a bit. Then Jeremy pointed to the corner. Katherine was making out with Damon. It really looked like they should get a room.

"Eww Jeremy don't say that!" Anna protested

"What do you call that then" he responded still pointing at the couple.

Anna shrugged, "An inch he can't scratch. Not an actual girlfriend. My brother doesn't do girlfriends."

"He's your brother?" Jeremy asked. Anna nodded. In my opinion, Jeremy was asking the wrong questions.

"So they aren't together?" I asked without actually meaning to say it out loud.

Anna nodded her head, "Yup. They don't do anything real couples do. They don't go on dates or buy each other stuff. Or celebrate each other's birthday. Psh she can't even get Effy or Eazy's names right. Truth be told, Damon and Kat aren't even genuinely nice to each other. "

"So why is he with her?"

"He likes it that way. He tried real dating for awhile but he's no good at it. You should know, he tried dating Caroline."

"I didn't know that." I said taking out my bag of grapes. Anna looked at them hungrily so I offered some to her. She took them without a word. Then I noticed she didn't have a lunch

"Where's your lunch, Anna?"

Anna smiled awkwardly, "Silly me, I always forget to pack it."

I let the comment slide.

….

I wasn't too excited to walk into English class. Klaus had his eyes on me the entire time. When the bell rang I swear everyone thought I was crazy when I shot out of class.

I took my usual seat and hardly noticed Damon take the seat right next to me.

"Hey Elena, I heard you got in a lil' fight." He told me. His voice surprised me.

"Ugh.. yea I guess I kinda did." I showed him my detention slip as proof. He took out his detention slip to compare.

"What for?"

"They caught me stealing from the biology lab."

"What on earth would you steal from there?"

"Let's just say I witnessed your little fight this morning."

"You were there?" I asked in surprise. Then why on earth were you still making out with the devil at lunch? Come to think of it, I don't think he saw me at lunch.

"Yup and trust me this slip will be all worth it." He said pointing as his own.

This was all confusing but Mr. Dial never failed with perfect timing.

…

As I packed my stuff for Math, I had no intention of following Damon out but he waited for me.

"Come on detention buddy." He told me. Then as we walked out the door he put his arm around me like he often did with his sister. Then I realized Damon now considered me a friend. He steered me down the wrong locker hall.

"Damon I still have to get stuff from my locker before detention and I don't think you can be late for that sort of thing."

Damon rolled his eyes. "The lockers are open after detention and trust me you're not gonna wanna miss this."

Somehow I trusted him and didn't argue. Plus I liked his arm around me it felt real nice and the smell of him was intoxicating. Plus no one bumped into us. Damon had a different aura from his cousin but the result was the same, everybody moved out of the way.

Then suddenly we stopped. He pulled me by the waist to a wall and kept his hand there. I don't think he was aware of it but I wasn't arguing. He kept little space between us as we waited for something but his face was intent on spot down the hall.

"Damon what are we doing here? The detention room is across the school." I argued but not wholeheartedly.

"Shhh. You'll ruin the surprise." He told me. Then suddenly I saw Katherine walk up to a locker, quite possibly her own locker.

When she opened it something jumped out at her. _Ribbit, Ribbit._ She screamed so loud, it was deafening. Then more frogs jumped out at her. She yelled more. The people in the hall began to laugh. She tried to get the frogs off of her, but they were slippery.

I hadn't noticed yet but I had a huge grin on my face. Damon's face got close enough to whisper into my ear, "You're welcome."

I giggled, "That was SO worth the trip over here."

"Come on. We should get to detention" He told me as Katherine still yelled and squealed. Well I certainly wasn't going to help her.

As we walked through the locker halls to detention, Damon just gave me that special smile that he rarely showed and wound his right arm across my shoulders once again. Damon was strange I told myself. He never did what I thought he would do. He never ceased to surprise me since the day I met him. He never acted like any guy I had ever met, so that made it impossible to describe him. He wasn't exactly a good person or bad person. He was simply Damon and I was more than alright with that because I knew in my heart that everything Damon did he did for love. Love for his family and maybe even love for his friends.

**Hope you liked the chapter. The last paragraph is my real opinion of the character on the show, I think some of you would agree.**


	6. Girl meets Big Mike

**Starting where I left off, walking into detention….**

Damon got a phone call before we got into the designated room. So I walked in alone, cautiously looking for Katherine. For some odd (maybe very realistic) reason I thought she was going to pounce on me the next time she saw me. I peeked in the room before fully opening the door and I saw that the coast was clear. The teacher hosting this detention was my Biology teacher. He looked as bored as he looked in biology class. I gave him my detention slip before I took a seat in the back and saved a seat for Damon.

Damon came in a few minutes after, when the class was fuller. When he gave the teacher his detention slip he looked lost for a moment, then he smiled when I waved at him and got his attention. I really liked the way he smiled. His eyes always made him look tired but when he smiled it took my breath away. As he walked toward me, I couldn't help but notice every girl in the room gawk at him. How in the world had I not noticed it before? My new friend wasn't just fairly good looking, he was smoking hot. I gulped as he took the seat next to me. My new revelation made me nervous.

Then I realized why I hadn't truly noticed his good looks before, it was because he hadn't wanted me to notice. When I like a person, I like him for more than his looks.

His body language was way different now. Maybe I had broken through something because I had never seen him so open before. But like he said before his siblings were everything to him. I guess offering to babysit them, chipped some of his tough exterior off but something told me that I still had a long way to go.

"So I heard you were the giant dragon." He said as he turned his saved seat to face me completely ignoring his still adoring fans. To be honest, I don't think he even a clue he had a fan club.

"Ummm…. Yeah, I was the tallest, plus with Effy present how could I possibly be the prettiest in the land?"

He giggled at my response. "Thanks, I don't think I told you that yesterday. It really meant a lot to me."

"No problem, they're good kids."

"Yeah they are… I need to find a permanent babysitter and fast. At least Anna had the day off today. Her music teacher gave her the day off after yesterday's performance. Plus she only teaches guitar on Mondays and Wednesdays."

I was about to ask a million questions when I saw Katherine walk in. She quickly walked to the front of the class and talked to my biology teacher, then walked out.

"Hey no fair!" I exclaimed

Damon shrugged, "She's a Mikaelson. She probably told the principal some lie about the fight and blamed it all on you."

"What? She can't get away with that." I argued with spastic hand gestures

Damon let out a sigh, "Well her dad owns like half of Mystic Falls. That's why the Mikaelson's can get away with so much. The Forbes and my uncle Giuseppe Salvatore own the other half. Very few places are independent, like the Grill"

I frowned at the revelation and crossed my arms on my desk to have something to put my chin on.

Damon gave me a small grin, "You know with those big doe eyes, your puppy dog face is even more irresistible. I swear you could anything ask me to do anything right now and I'd do it."

I felt a little better and turned to face him to try the full of effect of my eyes. "Get me out of detention?" I pleaded. I so did not want to spend my free time here.

Damon grabbed my chin and pulled me closer to him. My heart beat a million times faster. It was official; I had a huge crush on my new friend.

"Those eyes give you an unfair advantage" He told me before he let me go and gave me that special smile, "either way your wish is my command."

That smile gives you an unfair advantage I secretly thought. Then my biology teacher coughed to get our attention.

"Well delinquents I have papers to grade. So I'll come and check on you every 20 minutes. No phones. No leaving. No talking. This is a two hour detention session." He announced to the class before he left.

I started to take out my notebook to start on my homework when Damon got up from his desk to look out the door. He turned to the rest of us.

"Okay, he's gone. Everyone back by 4, no excuses and no running in the halls." He announced to the room.

Then suddenly everyone got up to leave. I was utterly confused.

Damon came to grab his stuff and when I didn't immediately follow he looked at me strangely.

"Well aren't you coming?" he asked

"What do you mean? What's going on?"

Damon bit his bottom lip, maybe trying not to laugh. "That teacher sleeps the whole two hours. He won't be back until four."

My goody-twoshoes persona suddenly came out. "Are you sure we won't get into any trouble?" I asked since I already had an Aunt Jenna lecture waiting for me when I got home. Getting into fights wasn't exactly every guardian's wish come true.

"I'm sure. Don't you trust me?" He said taking out his hand to help me out of the desk. I sighed before I easily gave in and took his hand.

He didn't let go of my hand as we rushed out the door to catch up with the crowd.

….

I wasn't sure where we were going because Damon wasn't sharing. We didn't take his car, we just walked behind the crowd of people from detention.

"Where are we going?" I asked because I still had no idea.

"I have a feeling you don't like surprises Elena?" he teased. He was right I didn't. I cried on my surprise tenth birthday because I thought everyone had forgotten it. When people jump out in surprise, I don't think they ever expect you to cry, but I did.

I looked at him with a faux mad face. "With you everything is a surprise."

He laughed as if I told him a joke. We walked hand in hand until we finally got to the Grill. The hand holding wasn't exactly intimate in a love bird kinda way. It was more like friendship or companionship and the one time I tried to pull way and answer my buzzing phone he held on tighter. I never got to read the text message.

I was following the crowd to an empty table when he nudged me in the opposite direction.

"Where do you think you're going?" he asked

"Just following the crowd." I admitted

"Nope. Come on, we're going backstage."

"Are we groupies?" I teased

He rolled his eyes, "I didn't know Big Mike was your type of guy."

The women bartender waved as we walked pass her into the kitchen. She was lady in her early fifties or late forties. She seemed genuinely happy to see Damon. A 300 pound man greeted us when we walked through the double doors. I was guessing this was big Mike.

"Damon, my boy. You brought pretty lady!" he said in a very husky voice

"Yeah I did. Is snooty Trevor around? I owe the pretty lady a meal."

I almost turned red so I had to look away.

"Naw he's gone for the day. What does the special lady want?" Big Mike asked. Damon turned to face me.

"Elena this is Big Mike," Damon said and I waved hello with big smile because I was nervous, "He used to cook in France, New York and LA but settled in Mystic Falls when he fell in love with Liz the lady bartending in the front. He can cook anything."

I bit my lower lip thinking about what I wanted. I thought the owed lunch would be a sandwich or something. I never thought it would be anything like this.

"She's got big doe eyes Damon. Those things are gonna get you." Big mike said with a hearty laugh

Damon smiled that irresistible smile. I noticed that my puppy dog face made him do that.

"Umm… Can I have banana nut pancakes?" I asked, "My momma used to make them all the time. I've been craving them"

Big mike nodded with pursed lips, "Coming right up. How about you Damon?"

"I think I want pancakes too. Make mine chocolate chip." Damon answered

"K then breakfast for dinner. I think I'll make some bacon, eggs and hash browns too. Your lady friend needs some more meat on her bones."

"Big Mike you think everybody needs some more meat on their bones." Damon responded

Big Mike shrugged, "It's true."

…

There was a table in the kitchen that Damon cleaned and prepared on the spot.

"How do you know Big Mike?" was the first thing I asked when we both sat down. I was hoping it was nothing too intrusive.

"Well I work here." Damon admitted

"What do you do?" I asked. Curiosity being a driving force.

"I cook."

I laughed a little and his nose scrunched in a playful manner. "Why are laughing?" he asked

"Well I didn't know you could cook."

"Well I didn't start off as a cook. I got a job here when I was 11. I was bus boy. By age 13 I was a cashier. By 15 Big Mike showed me the ropes to cooking. The cook gets paid the most, so it's a good gig. Big Mike likes to spend his nights with his lady so I get all the evening shifts."

Again I had an urge to ask a million questions but I held it in. Suddenly I remembered that my phone buzzed on the way over here so I took it out.

The text was from Caroline _where are you?_

_Detention _I answered quickly

"So I need to ask you something?" Damon said

"Sure what's up?"

"How well do you know William Hanson?"

It took me a while to recognize the name, "The football player?" I asked and Damon nodded, "he seems nice. Hangs out with the cheerleaders a lot. Why do you ask?"

"I got a call from Anna before detention. He asked her to the homecoming dance."

I frown as I thought about Jeremy feelings about this.

"What was that face for?" he asked.

"Umm nothing. From what I know and from what I've seen Will seems like a good guy."

_Buzz buzz. When are you getting out? _Caroline texted

_At 4 _I answered

Damon looked deep in thought when I looked away from my phone. He didn't look at me when he said, "Anna says I scare all her guy friends away."

I almost snorted, "Umm… well you did manage to beat up two hockey players all by yourself."

He had a tight smile on his lips then he sighed as if finally deciding something.

_Meet me the football fields after detention_ Caroline texted back

_Okay _ I responded

"who keeps texting you?" Damon asked clearly annoyed. To be honest, I had a Power Ranger ring tone. It could get pretty annoying.

"Caroline, she wants me to try out for the cheerleading squad." I answered

Damon smiled widely, "Why are you smiling?" I asked feeling a bit self-conscious under his gaze.

Big Mike suddenly came over, with food, answering my question, "Damon has always had a thing for that red and white cheerleading uniform. Even dated that blonde one for a while."

To this Damon frowned. I looked at the giant plate of food. "Thanks Big Mike!" I said with too much enthusiasm.

"You're welcome pretty lady. Just be careful with my pride and joy here. He looks tough as nails but he breaks like glass." He said tapping Damon's shoulder. I smiled at the sentiment.

"Thanks Big Mike. It makes me feel REAL manly when you say things like that." Damon said shaking his head at Big Mike.

Big Mike walked away laughing.

The food was so good. I think the meal for meal trade off was off balance. I didn't notice my nonverbal-ness until I looked up and saw Damon looking at me.

I smiled nervously, "Big Mike is real good cook" I told Damon. Damon just smiled and finally dug into his own pancakes.

"Here try mine" he offered with his fork. I didn't have time to think about whether I should eat it off his fork or put it on my plate because he had it leveled at my mouth. The chocolate chip pieces melted warmly in mouth. I took a minute to enjoy it.

"Mine is so much better." I provoked, "You wanna try?" I took a piece of my pancake on my fork, he leaned forward to take the bite.

"No way, chocolate always trumps healthy." He argued, licking his lips subtly and wiping some syrup from the corner of his mouth. Somehow I thought his mannerisms at the dining table were sensual. I laughed awkwardly and continued to eat.

After a moment of quiet eating, he resumed the conversation. "So I gotta another thing to ask you."

"Okay shoot." I said taking a big gulp of my freshly squeezed orange juice.

"Are you going to the homecoming dance this Saturday?"

It was a miracle that kept the orange juice from shooting out my nose.

"Umm… yea I think so but I don't have a date yet."

Damon became serious for a moment, "Can I borrow a black dress?"

I was utterly confused and my face plainly showed it. For some odd reason I automatically pictured Damon wearing one of my dresses to the school dance. The view was not pretty, even with the extra leg showing.

Damon eyes shot in surprise, "O not for me, definitely not for me. I meant for Anna. She likes to wear black."

I mentally looked through my closet, "Uh…. Yeah I have like three dresses she can choose from. Are you going? To the dance I mean."

"Nah I got work." He said nonchalantly. My heart sank a bit.

When we started to pack up and leave I thanked Big Mike like thousand times. I also waved bye to Liz. Damon put his arm around me again as he alerted the rest of the people it was time to head back.

We made it back to the room with time to spare. When my biology teacher came I was surprised to see the right side of hair looked muzzled. It was clear he had been sleeping on that side.

"Good delinquents. I came in and checked on you a few times and all of you were studying or sitting here quietly. You're all dismissed."

…

Damon had his arm around me again as we walked to the football fields which was next to the parking lot where his car was parked.

"Do you get detention a lot?" I asked as we joked about the teacher's lopsided hair.

"Yeah… I'm kinda a detention rewards member." He told me. Then we both noticed the rose petals on the floor and we looked straight ahead where there was a giant banner that read, "Homecoming?" with Stefan underneath it holding a bouquet of flowers. Bonnie and Caroline were the two holding the banner.

Damon got close to my ear, "Looks like someone's got a date to the homecoming dance." He teased

I gulped and my eyes went wide. Damon gave me a small nudge forward before he started walking to the parking lot, "See you tomorrow!" He yelled.

**This chapter was ever so slightly inspired by an episode from a show called Awkward. Damon was "jenna plus". **


	7. Girl meets door

Detention was literally the best part of my day yesterday. When I finally got home from my long school day, Aunt Jenna gave me a thirty minute lecture on using my words not my fists. I took in the lecture in stride and tried not argue too much. Aunt Jenna decided not ground me after I told her my side of the story.

After the lecture came the hard part. I had to tell Jeremy about Anna. While I was telling him the news I saw all of Jeremy's emotions play out on his face. He started off neutral because he was simply finishing some homework at the time. Then he became confused, when realization hit and he became disappointed. By the time I left his room, he looked sad.

When I entered my bedroom, I thought seriously about telling Damon that Will was a shady person, who should not be trusted with Anna. However, I had no right. First of all Will was not a very bright person, from what I could tell, but I had not witnessed a malicious bone in his body. Second, this was Anna's choice and I wouldn't want to ruin that for her. Third, I had a feeling that Will would be harmed if I told Damon. Damon was a very protective person. If Will had the balls to ask out Damon's sister then I assumed he really liked her.

The next morning was like the last morning. Jeremy and I got up and ready before Aunt Jenna even got out of bed. We walked to school in silence for a period of time before he broke the quietness.

"SO what does he look like?" was the first thing Jeremy asked

"What?" I said a little taken back from the sudden breach of noise.

"This Will guy. Is he one of those football players with hands the size of frying pans? You know one of those guys with the beer bellies? Or maybe he's balding with missing teeth?"

I tried not to laugh and take his question seriously because he looked completely sincere. "No, he looks like a young Jon Hamm." I answered truthfully.

"Who's Jon Hamm?"

"Have you ever watched Mad Men?"

"A few times."

"Well Jon Hamm is Don Draper."

Jeremy puts his hands over his face and dragged them down tugging at his skin. "You've got to kidding me." He said flustered. I only wish I could tell Jeremy that Will was the middle aged pirate he was picturing him as.

…

When we finally got to school we quickly went our separate ways and I headed to my locker in haste. It was only then that I realized I had twenty minutes to spare. I decided to walk around until I spotted someone I knew.

It didn't take long for me to spot Anna and Damon. Anna's face was turned facing the inside of her locker while Damon looked mad leaning against a locker next to hers. That's when I noticed they were arguing. They weren't screaming at each other, but judging from Damon's mad face and Anna's hand gestures I could tell they weren't talking about rainbows and unicorns.

I quickly tried to change my route to give them some privacy but Anna turned to look at me at that exact moment. I was momentarily surprised when she faced me. She had a smile when she saw me but she hadn't applied any of her heavy makeup yet. However that wasn't exactly why I was taken back. Sure seeing Anna's bare face was different but she was very pretty nonetheless. It was the purple bruise on the upper left cheek that surprised me. The first thing that popped into my head was the Mikaelson siblings.

Anna's hand gestured me to join them. Damon's face was still set in his mad face and it didn't look like it was going anywhere anytime soon.

"Hey Elena!"

"Hey Anna, what happened to your cheek?"

She shrugged, "It was Eazy, we were playing baseball together and this bruise is a testament to my lack of catching skills." I heard Damon give the comment a dry laugh then he nodded in my direction to say hi.

Anna rolled her eyes and then smacked Damon across his stomach, "Give her a real hi dumbass."

Damon rubbed his stomach then said, "Hey Elena" without any of the enthusiasm or warmth that I felt from Anna.

Okay? I thought to myself

Anna closed her locker and turned to fully face me, "Ignore him. He's in one of his moods." She told me, "You wanna get breakfast? Damon ran out of the house so fast I didn't even have time to put on my makeup and cover this disgusting bruise."

"Sure. Jeremy and I got here way too early." I responded. Damon was still silent and brooding but he tagged along as we walked down the hall to the cafeteria. Anna walked in between us.

"So I heard Stefan asked you to the dance." Anna teased with her eyebrows shooting up and down.

I almost turned red. As far as embarrassing high school moments went; that one would go down in the top ten.

"Yea he did." I said stating the obvious.

"Well… what did you tell him?" Anna pushed. I noticed Damon's attention peek for a second.

"Well he went through a lot trouble…." I started saying but then the door to the boy's bathroom swung opened and hit Anna and me. The door narrowly missed Damon.

I got up quickly to salvage my pride and minimize my embarrassment. I was rubbing my sore forehead when I noticed that Damon already had a small boy slammed against the wall. I was guessing that if the guy hadn't just relieved himself that there would be a wet stain trickling down his pants.

While I was frozen in place, Anna quickly got up to separate her brother and the small boy.

"Damon! It was an accident. He didn't mean to!" Anna said as she firmly pulled her brother off the boy.

"I'm sorry Anna. I am so sorry. I didn't mean to" the boy admitted with Damon's fist still balled in his shirt.

"Damon let go of him. Stop being such a bully!" Anna argued

Damon didn't say word but he did what his sister told him to do. I gently smiled at the boy as he took off running and mouthing sorry.

"Get some air or something Damon. You're being a complete douche! And you're scaring Elena." Anna sternly told her brother in a loud whisper.

Damon took one look at me and took off.

"You okay?" Anna asked me as I finally stepped out of my trance and picked my backpack off the floor.

"Yeah I'm fine. How about you?"

"I'm not gonna lie, the door hit us pretty hard but that freshman didn't mean it. I know him, he wouldn't hurt a fly."

"Yea it's cool. I know it was accident."

"Come on, I still need to put on my make-up." She said and I followed her into the neighboring girl's bathroom.

Anna worked mechanically as she started to line her eyes with thick black make-up. She was able to cover her bruise with her foundation.

"So what's got Damon in such a mood?" I asked trying to sound nonchalant.

"He's just upset about something." Anna stated over vaguely then changed the subject, "So are you going to homecoming with Stefan?"

"Umm… yea I am. He went through a lot of trouble asking me and I kinda told Caroline that I would say yes."

Anna laughed a little. "Well don't sound too enthusiastic."

I smiled, "Well I'm excited about the dance. I've never been to one in this school."

"It's not much. It's held at the gym with some cheap decorations but it's usually fun. You wanna get ready together? Damon said you might have a dress for me to borrow?" Anna stated finishing her make-up with a few coats of mascara.

"Yea, I have like three that you'd probably like. And getting ready together will be fun, what time do you wanna meet? Stefan told me most of the football team is going in one stretch limo."

"Um maybe 6 30 at your house?" Anna suggested

"Okay, sounds like a plan." I said as we walked out of the bathroom.

…

Anna and I never got to the cafeteria because we were ran out of time. We simply said our goodbyes and I was able to get to history class early where I took my usual seat next to Caroline.

"Hey Elena!" she squealed

"Hey Caroline" I said taking my seat.

"You must be so excited, the star quarterback asked you to homecoming!" she continued

"Yea, I am but I still need to buy dress. I want to buy new one." I said with as much enthusiasm as I could pull out myself

"We'll go shopping tomorrow morning. I'll bring Bonnie. O and speaking of bonnie, she thinking of Sadie Hawkin-ing your brother?"

Huh? was the expression my face wore.

"You know asking him to the dance, but she thinks you wouldn't like it."

"O! Yeah of course she can. I just … don't want be in the middle of it."

"Great!" She gleamed, "I love playing cupid. First you and Stefan now your brother and Bonnie, I might be looking at future in match making."

I laughed a little.

"What I'm serious. I'm setting everyone up! On the football team, on my cheerleading squad. FYI I have your cheerleading uniform in my car"

"But I never tried out."

Caroline shrugged, "Well there's no practice on Fridays, so just make it to practice on Monday."

I smiled. GREAT….

…..

At lunchtime I sat with the cheerleaders since Stefan wanted to talk to me about homecoming. He wanted to match….. I told him I would possibly wear blue. I wasn't big on the matchy-matchy thing but according to the cheerleaders it was essential.

By English class I found myself daydreaming instead listening. Don't get me wrong I liked English class but today was a self-proclaimed movie day. We were studying a play called the _Twelfth night_ by William Shakespeare this week and our teacher thought a movie called _She's the Man _starring Amanda Bynes and Channing Tatum would be a good way to modernize.

It was a guilty pleasure movie of mine, with tons cringe worthy scenes of the most awkward situations, including watching Channing Tatum sticking a tampon up his bleeding nose because David Beckman apparently did it all the time. However, I'd seen it a few too many times.

Nonetheless, Channing Tatum was an amazing male lead in my daydreams until the dream took an unexpected turn. Instead of watching Channing Tatum slowly take off shirt I was picturing DAMON! This crush was getting worse in spite of this morning!

When the movie ended along with class, I took my time getting out of class. I wasn't sure I wanted to sit next to Damon in the next class. I guessing if I got there later than usual I wouldn't have to, but as soon as I leisurely stepped out of my class I bumped into him.

His face looked like it was carved out of stone and set to look mad.

"Hey Damon" I said quietly hoping he was in a better mood. He rolled his eyes at me, this made me mad.

"Seriously what's wrong with you today? Are you mad at me? Did I do something wrong?"

Damon's face finally broke from its mad face and was replaced by confusion. "You didn't do anything wrong, Elena."

"Then why are you treating me like scum on the bottom of your shoe. I don't know about you but I had fun hanging with you yesterday"

Damon looked to right as if contemplating his next words, "I shouldn't have been in detention. I had to be somewhere yesterday and I wasn't and because of that something happened. I shouldn't have been so careless."

Mr. Privacy was starting to sound more like Mr. Super vague but the message was clear. He regretted his time with me.

"I'm sorry Damon."

To this Damon looked even more confused, "What are you sorry about?"

"Well, you wouldn't have had detention if it weren't for me." The first bell rang signaling two minutes until class time.

Damon face cracked into a smile, "it wasn't your fault Elena. Not at all. I had a blast with you yesterday and I enjoyed playing that prank on Katherine. I, not you, should be more careful about what I choose to do…. I'm sorry, I'm pissed off today and I'm just taking it out on anybody."

"S'okay. Why don't we just start the day over?... O hey Damon! How have been? I haven't seen you since like… this morning when you tried to beat up that freshman" I started. Damon looked like he was about to burst out laughing.

"You're such a dork."

I gave him a faux mad face and the second bell rang, we were officially late. "Hey! I might be a dork but I'm a dork giving you a second chance and second chances don't come around too often."

Damon looked at me in funny way, like those times I thought he was deciding something in his head, "Hey Elena. I've been good but that freshman had it coming, he hit my sister and good friend from mine."

"It looked like accident to me" I playfully argued continuing our fake conservation.

"Well, " he said placing his hand across my shoulders and I knew his bad mood had passed, "Look at this way, now he'll always be careful opening that door. I just saved several people from mind numbing headaches."

I rolled my eyes and we walked to math class. The whole class turned around as we opened the door, five minutes late.

"It's a bit late in the week to be getting lost Mr. Salvatore, care to explain your tardiness?" Mr. Dial asked as we walked in.

Damon smiled at the teacher. "It was taco Friday Mr. Dial," Damon said tapping his stomach, "I just had some explosive diarrhea. Elena was kind enough to bring me some Pepto bismol."

My eyes went wide and I held in my laugh. Mr. Dial's eyes bugged out, "Both you take your seats please. Some students actually come to school to learn."

We took our usual seats in the back and I saw Stefan eye Damon once again. I was guessing having Damon's arm around me wasn't something he wanted to see. I hoped Stefan didn't take the gesture the wrong way, since Damon was just a friend.

A crush-worthy friend I occasionally daydreamed about during English class but still just a friend.

….

**Thanks for the reviews! **

**I had some trouble writing this chapter but i hope you still liked it. **

**Fyi I ran out of prewritten chapters so the updates might take a little longer now. Could you guys give me week or so to write the next batch of chapters? **


	8. Girls meets homecoming

**Sorry about the week long hiatus. Starts off a bit funny but no I didn't post the wrong chapter…..**

It was Saturday morning and I was flipping some chocolate chip pancakes on a skillet when someone wrapped their arms around me. The arms were strong and masculine; I didn't have to guess whose they were.

"Damon. I'm making breakfast!" I disputed without any real zest

He kissed me on the cheek. "Can I have a bite?" he asked teasing my right ear.

"These are going to be burnt pancakes if you keep doing that." I argued very weakly

He turned me around to give me a proper kiss on the mouth. "I like my pancakes burnt," he whispered then picked me up to place me on the nearby counter. When I was settled I wrapped my arms around his neck to give him my full and undivided attention. I couldn't help but smile under his kisses. He didn't seem to mind since he couldn't help but give me that special Damon smile.

As the kiss grew deeper, I stopped smiling and focused only where our lips met and what his tongue was doing. He moved one of his hands from my hips to my jaw to get a better grip on me. He then tilted my head slightly to get a better angle and I let out a small whimper of pleasure when his tongue was able to penetrate deeper. He liked the sound so he repeated the motion and with that he completely claimed my mouth. I grabbed the hair on the back of his head and pulled him closer to me. He responded by placing his other hand under my knee and pulling our lower bodies closer.

Then I heard a small girl's voice, "Ewena! What are doing with Stefan?"

I came up for air and found Effy standing only two feet away from us. "Hey Effy. Where's Stefan?" I asked slightly embarrassed of kissing her brother in front of her.

"I'm right here Elena." The person next to me said. Then it hit me I wasn't kissing Damon, I was kissing Stefan! What the hell!

"Stefan what are you doing in Damon's house?" I asked him.

"Elena!" a little boy screamed. I turned and there was Eazy.

"Hey Eazy? What are doing here?"

"Wake up, Elena!" Eazy screamed

"What?"

"Wake up, your phone is ringing." Effy said in man's voice and then my world started to shake.

My eyes shot open and it felt like was thrust on my bed. Jeremy was shaking me with one hand.

"Elena, wake up. Caroline keeps calling every five minutes." Jeremy told me with my phone on hand.

"What? O crap! What time is it?"

"Almost 11, seriously Elena a bulldozer couldn't wake you up."

I shot out of bed and straight into the shower. I think my hair was still a little soapy when I got out but I was seriously already thirty minutes late. I put on the first things I could find and called Caroline to tell her I was already on my way.

…

I arrived at the mall just before noon. Bonnie and Caroline were at the food court eating some Chinese food.

"There you are! What took you so long?" Caroline asked a little peeved which was understandable. I wasn't just late, I was really late.

"Hey Caroline, hey bonnie. I overslept." I explained as I took a seat next to Bonnie.

"Must have been some dream." Bonnie joked as she turned to look at me.

"What?" I asked a bit frantic as if they knew exactly what my dream was about. My eyes became wider as blood rushed to my face.

"You overslept; you must have been dreaming something good." Bonnie elaborated

"O, I actually can't remember it." I lied. In reality I still had very vivid memories of some parts of my dream. Most of them including me on the counter with Damon…...

…

We entered a few stores when they finished eating. Caroline already had her dress picked out, it was going to be yellow. It was only Bonnie and I who had to buy dresses. Jeremy had said yes to Bonnie and I was aware that she was looking for a green dress because Jeremy was out buying a green tie. Something he had argued against because he figured he'd probably never wear it again.

Bonnie was the first to find a dress and that left me the odd man out. Twenty minutes after Bonnie had bought her dress, I narrowed my search down to two dresses.

Caroline was holding one on each hand. "Okay so the blue says, pretty and romantic but the red one says, 'aye caliente'" Caroline explained fanning herself at the end.

I wondered which one to choose. I was leaning toward the flowy blue one with the Grecian top when Bonnie asked, "Which one do you think Salvatore would like best?"

I wished she would have used Stefan's first name since Salvatore made me think of Damon. The next thing I knew I was buying the curve hugging red dress with the sweetheart top instead of the blue one. At least it was less expensive, maybe because it had less fabric.

…

We're done shopping by 3 and I kept myself busy with some last minute unpacking and organizing in my room. When I was done I decided to treat myself to a little mani-pedi. Around six thirty my doorbell rang and with my nail polish still drying I went to answer the door. Aunt Jenna was out buying groceries and helping Jeremy pick out a last minute corsage.

Anna was proving to be a person who was methodically on time. Damon's car had already pulled out of the drive way when I opened the door. I won't lie I secretly wanted to see Damon today but the car was long gone.

"Hey Elena" Anna said smiling with a duffel bag. She didn't have her dark make up on again but she was probably planning on having a fresh set of paint for the dance.

"Hey Anna, what's up with the duffel bag?" I inquired. I didn't think someone could have or need that much make-up.

"O Damon might be working late so I was wondering if I could sleep over for the night?"

"Yeah! Sure! Sleepover!" I said with too much enthusiasm.

"Good." Anna said with a smile as she stepped over the threshold.

…

Anna picked out a dress I had once used for a funeral. I decided to leave that part of my dress's backstory out; she had enough accessories to spice it up.

When we started getting ready for the dance, I found her very easy to talk to. She talked about Will, not liking chemistry in school and her music classes and then stumbled across an odd conversation.

"So I went to the grill last night with Effy and Eazy, to visit Damon at work and I swear everyone could not stop talking about you"

"What? Why?" I asked incredulously and a bit self-consciously

"Well I'm convinced that Big Mike and Liz are both secretly and madly in love with you."

I laughed at the thought. "You can't fall in love with someone after just one day especially since I hardly talked to either of them."

"Well they're both thoroughly convinced about you. Big Mike says Liz has very good instincts and can tell if someone is good within five seconds of meeting them."

"Impossible." I challenged

Anna shrugged, "Well they weren't your only fans. Apparently Eazy wants you to go to one of his soccer games."

"I thought he played baseball?"

"The kid plays everything and he's good at everything too. It's his talent. Eazy has his sports, I have my music, Damon's a genius, and Effy … well Effy…"

"Can make anyone fall in love with her?" I suggested

"Yeah, she's definitely got that going for her." Anna said with a small laugh, "But really who could resist those big blue eyes?"

I couldn't help but compare them to Damon's eyes at the moment. Then Anna was finished with her outfit.

"How do I look?" She asked spinning in a circle. Her hair was in big curls with a bow on right side of her head. She put on small black gloves and an intricate lace chocker necklace. Her make-up was more precise than usual and to me she looked like a petite goth princess. It was definitely something only a confident person could pull off and Anna was anything but shy.

"You look great, Anna. Stunning."

She gleamed at my response and smiled at herself in the mirror. I went to the bathroom to change into my red dress. I couldn't get the zipper up from behind me so I stepped out of the bathroom before looking at the mirror.

I held the dress together with my hands and was about to ask Anna for help when she said, "Va, va, voom Elena. Dang! You're sure gonna make jaws drop tonight!"

This only made more nervous to wear the dress. "Thanks, help me zip up?"

"I can't believe your wearing this for my cousin." Anna joked when she came around to zip me. Actually more because of your brother but I definitely wasn't going elaborate on that. Plus I wasn't even going to see Damon tonight. When she finished zipping me up I looked in the mirror to see the full effect.

My hair was in soft curls and my eyeliner was kept light but still more than casual. I figured with a dress like this I shouldn't call any more attention to me. I liked what I saw in the mirror. I looked good and I felt confident because of it. I was about to put on some pink lip gloss when Anna smacked the lip gloss away.

"No way! With a dress like that you can't wear pink lip gloss! Here let me finish your look." She said grabbing something from her own make-up bag. She sat me down since I was a few inches too tall for her. She gently smoothed over the lipstick and then said "Voila! Now you look stunning!"

I got up to see the finished look. The lips were a slightly off red color and made my lips look a tiny bit fuller. I liked it; it made me very old Hollywood.

"Thanks Anna" I said and the doorbell rang, "That must be the limo. Go get Jeremy please"

"Sure, don't forget your purse" She said handing me my clutch.

I rushed down the steps calling out Aunt Jenna's name to tell her that we were heading out. When I opened the door I honestly did not expect Damon Salvatore.

He was in suit with a red tie and his hands placed behind his back. He looked really good with his hair less of a shaggy mess, but admittedly I liked it better on the shaggy side. I had a moment of full pleasure when he took me in. If the rest of the night was a dud this would moment would make it all worth it.

"Hey Damon, what are you doing here?" I asked. He blinked a couple of times before he spoke.

"Umm..." then he pulled out a chauffer's hat from behind his back, "I'm your driver for the night. This is one of my pick up jobs. My uncle Giuseppe owns a limo company on the outskirts of town. On nights like these he hires me as extra help."

"O… well you look nice. I think we even match." I said pointing at the dress he seemed to like.

Damon had a big nice smile. "Well you look amazing Elena."

I smiled in pure joy. Jeremy and Anna came down a second later.

"Damon! Are you driving us?" She said then spun in a circle, "How do I look? Jeremy says I look real pretty."

Damon smiled at his sister. He had a look that I've only seen on one other man, my father. Damon was looking at his sister like if she was his teenage daughter. "You look good Anna"

Anna fake pouted, "I like Jeremy's answer better."

Damon laughed, "Well come on let's get in the limo. You guys were the first stop. I have like five more pick-ups. You guys are a big group."

As we walked out of the house I walked along side Damon and Anna had her right arm looped around Jeremy's left arm. We looked like our very own four member group heading to Homecoming.

….

I noticed very clearly that I liked Damon's reaction to my dress much more than Stefan's reaction. His reaction was similar but it didn't carry the same satisfaction. Stefan told me I looked beautiful and I told him he looked handsome. Which he did, he was one those rare types of teenagers that didn't look like a kid when he wore a suit. I noticed he felt a bit self-conscious about his blue tie. I told him being matchy-matchy was overrated.

We all had dinner at a nice restaurant and waiter was really nice to us. He even congratulated us all on our special day. I couldn't help but take several peeks at Anna and Will during dinner. They seemed to be having a good time. Since Damon wasn't having dinner with us I felt oddly responsible for his fifteen year old sister. Will did seem to like her a lot and I couldn't help but notice some green-eyed monsters staring in their direction.

I also peeked at Jeremy who looked very stiff in his suit. He wasn't a suit and tie kind of guy and I hoped Bonnie didn't take his stiffness to heart. He was just uncomfortable.

We took a lot of pictures inside and outside the restaurant. This bugged me a smidge but I was good company. Everybody was in a good mood.

When we finally got to the dance around nine I found myself having a good time with Stefan. He was a good dancer and the cheerleaders helped keep our conversation going. Everyone warned me about the founder's day punch and how it had too much spike to it. Some people still drank it anyway. Caroline was chugging it down like water.

Then at ten thirty it was time to announce homecoming queen. Since I was not a homecoming princess I decided that this would be the perfect time to get a breather. Stefan was a homecoming prince so I walked out of the gym alone.

It was hot and muggy in the gym after so much dancing, so I actually did feel the need for some fresh air. However, I had some ulterior motives. As soon as I walked out of the gym I walked to the parking lot hoping to catch a glimpse of Damon. I didn't think I'd find him locking lips with Katherine. From the looks of it she was trying to swallow him whole on the hood of the stretch limo. I cringed and half ran to the sitting area with the founder's day punch.

Some of the people there were tipsy from the punch. They seemed carefree and happy so I ladled a cup of the punch for myself. It tasted gross and burned on its way down but by the fourth one the little twinge in my heart hurt a little less. Damon and I were friends I told myself. Just friends I repeated in my head like a mantra. I nursed my fifth drink in my hands. I was being a silly girl I told myself.

I stumbled through the crowd until I came across Caroline. She was wearing a crown on her head with a sash that said homecoming queen. She was also punch drunk. Tyler was helping her walk to a table.

"Elena!" Caroline squealed, "I'm homecoming queen!"

Tyler had a patient face as he sat her down on a chair. I sat next to her to keep the room from spinning.

"I don't usually drink this much Elena?" she slurred

"I'm going to get her some water. Keep her company." Tyler told me and left her with me.

"I hate him, you know." She told me when Tyler left

"You hate Tyler? " I asked disbelievingly

"No not him. Damon! I hate Damon. He is such an asshole. Why did he have to be the one that drove us today? He drives me nuts."

"Why?" I asked half interested. I had seen Damon talking to Caroline earlier but I figured it was nothing since the conversation was short.

"I tried dating him in sophomore year. I thought he was cool with his bad boy persona and his cute little brother and sister. But he was such a dick! He never called. He broke up with me by text! Then he was making out with someone the very next day. He also never remembered anything, not my birthday or any month-iversaries! Three months I was with him. Three whole months and we never even went on a real date." She argued with fervor

"That must have sucked." I commented. Anna had been right about her brother.

"And he still drives me crazy to this day." She said letting her head rest on the table.

Then Bonnie and Jeremy walked out of the dance floor into the sitting area. They were both smiling.

"See that" Caroline pointed at them

"Yeah"

"That was me. I did that."

"Yea, I know. You're mystic falls very own cupid"

Caroline messed with her face. "I hope they get together." Caroline said before she began to close her eyes. Tyler came seconds later to help Caroline. He mentioned that he was going to take her home in his friend's car, since he drove in the limo. He politely asked me if I wanted to go home. I shook my head and told him I was fine and that I needed to find my date.

Stefan came looking for me moments later. He hadn't won homecoming king but he still looked happy.

"Hey Elena." He said before he took in my drunken state.

"Hey Steffy, how you doin'?" I slurred. I watched way too many reruns of Friends.

Stefan pulled my right arm around his shoulder before he wrapped his left arm around my waist to help me balance.

"The punch is strong. Let's get some fresh air," he offered and took me back outside. May be I should have taken Tyler's offer I thought as my world started to spin.

He walked with me to the edge of the parking lot and we stood for a while in the cold. It didn't take long before Damon spotted us with Kat behind him.

Damon looked at me then gave Stefan the meanest stare I had ever seen him give anyone.

"What the fuck did you do to her!" he yelled more than asked.

"Nothing. She just had too much founder's day punch." Stefan explained still holding on to me. I could hear Stefan's heart begin to race.

"Damon, she's fine. Come on, we were just getting started." I heard Katherine say

To that, I let go of Stefan and vomited in the bushes. Damon quickly came to grab my hair and pull it away from face.

"We're done Kat. Go home." I heard him say. She cursed before I heard her footsteps.

"Damon she's my date. I got this." Stefan offered. Damon didn't budge.

"You okay, Elena?" he asked very softly as he smoothed my hair.

I vomited again. Damon wiped some of the excess with his shirt sleeve.

"Don't, you'll ruin it" I protested. I didn't want him to get my revolting vomit on his nice suit.

"It's a rental." He whispered

"Damon let go of my date." Stefan announced with a newfound nerve.

"Stefan, the only way I'm letting go of Elena is you literally pry my hands off of her. You wanna try?" Damon challenged

I heard Stefan sigh; deflating whatever nerve he had just gained.

"I've got this, Stefan. Enjoy the dance." Damon said before he took off his jacket and wrapped it around my now shivering shoulders.

Then I heard Stefan walk away. I couldn't tell down from up at the moment, let alone find my common courtesy to say bye, or say anything to my date.

I got up slowly from my vomiting position and Damon wrapped his arms around me while we headed to the limo. I hated vomiting. It's one of the worst feelings in the world in my opinion. I felt a little better as the nausea subsided.

Damon helped me into the stretch limo slowly then came in after me. I lay down on his lap, liking the smell of his jacket, hating the taste in my mouth. He played with my hair in silence.

"Damon?" I said when I found my vocabulary once again.

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"For vomiting."

Damon laughed, "S'okay. You're going to be okay. The feeling will pass. I've tried the punch more than once."

I laughed a little, then kinda slipped into weird state of mind. It was the kind of state of mind that gives your words no filter.

"Your jacket smells nice, Damon. But you always smell nice." I said not able to stop myself.

Damon laughed again. I was just full of unintentional jokes tonight. "Thanks Elena."

"And your eyes, they're so pretty. Like little blue oceans." I said walking into dangerous territory but not able to stop myself.

"I like your eyes too. " He whispered still playing with my hair.

The rest slipped out without any real intention, like word vomit, "But everyone tells me not to date you. They say your trouble and then you're always making out with Katherine. I don't like her."

I felt Damon stiffen. "You shouldn't date me Elena. I'm no good at it."

I snuggled closer to him, not at all responding to his comment.

"Yeah I know. That's what they keep telling me."

"But I promise I'm a good friend."

"I know."

"Good, cause I really like you as a friend."

…

**Thanks for the reviews!**


	9. Girl meets Amelia

It's quite unusual to go to a school dance with somebody and end up in arms of someone else entirely but I hadn't meant to. I fell asleep on Damon's lap and when he woke me up it was almost midnight. The feeling of falling off the edge of the world had passed and he whispered to me if I wanted to catch the last dance.

I figured I had been a horrible date to Stefan and agreed to try catching the last dance. We made a stop at the bathroom so that could rinse my mouth out and touch up my makeup. I popped a small handful of breath mints in my mouth before I walked out.

Damon was the one who spotted Stefan with a blond cheerleader. I figured it was inevitable since I had ditched for him for almost two hours. I asked Damon to walk me back to the car but he let go of me instead and offered me his hand. "Elena, can I have this dance?" he asked.

I smiled and soon we were swaying to the second to last song of the night. Damon had his arms wrapped around me as lay my head on his chest. I held my arms close to me and left them in between us helping me balance. Most girls had their arms around their partners but I liked our embrace better. It was peaceful I thought, it offered no threat to my sanity.

When the last song came the world around me melted away. In my new world Damon and the lyrics to the song were the only things that existed. I closed my eyes to listen to the lyrics, they were beautiful.

_I'll always remember, _

_the song they were playing,_

_The first time we danced and I knew_

"I like this song." Damon whispered next to my ear. The sound of his voice tickled, and I nodded in response. Then I heard Damon join in.

"_As we swayed to the music,_

_and held to each other,_

_I fell in love with you"_

"Sorry am I ruining the song?" He asked. I looked up from his chest, "No I like your voice it's nice." I said barely above a whisper.

Damon smiled and said, "It was my mother's favorite song. She chose it for her first dance with my dad." Damon continued to sing it and for a while I couldn't hear anything but his voice. It was like he alone was singing the song.

After awhile he just hummed the lyrics and I lost sight of the words. I just paid attention to the melody as his hums pulsed in my ear.

When the song ended he continued to hum the song holding me tight. I knew then that it was inevitable. One day I would find myself madly in love with this man and it surprised me because I couldn't help but notice that the thought did not scare me. I actually looked forward to day I could say it without a shadow of doubt. But today, Damon was still a mystery to me but tomorrow… I didn't know what tomorrow held for me.

…

Stefan found us still intertwined. Damon kissed my palm before he took off for the limo. I found the gesture strange but I didn't put too much thought into it.

"How are you doing?" Stefan asked with his voice full of worry.

"I'm good. I just have to sleep it off. Sorry for being a bad date."

"No worries, everyone has a founder's punch night. It's like initiation in mystic falls."

"I don't think I passed the test very well."

Stefan smiled, "I think the point is to survive it. I've seen people flat on their backs after a couple of drinks."

I laughed a little. "Well I think I'm just knock out when I get home."

Stefan's smile disappeared, "Would it be okay if I go to an after-party? You could come."

I smiled, "O no, I'm good. The founder's day punch has definitely taken its toll on me but go …. Really have fun." I said as convincingly as I could.

Stefan's grin tugged at the right side of mouth. "Okay, well let's head out."

Stefan and I were one of the last couples to enter the limo. I could hear the music blaring as Damon opened the door for us. I don't know if was the alcohol or the fact that I was dead tired but I had never been so annoyed with loud music in my life.

"Too loud?" Damon asked as I plugged my ears. I nodded in response.

"You could ride in the front?" Damon offered

"I think she has spent enough time with you." Stefan said abruptly

Damon titled his face slightly to the left and stood still for a moment before he smiled, "I'm not trying to steal your date Stefan. I'm just trying to help."

Stefan's hands balled up into a fist. I smiled as I felt invisible between the cousins. "Umm… I'm fine Damon. Really I 'm going to sit in the back with Stefan."

Stefan unclenched his fist and put his hand on the small of my back. He led me into the mini-party. I forced myself not to cover my ears or look annoyed. I ended up sitting next to Bonnie who wasn't with my brother.

"Hey Bonnie, where's Jeremy?"

"Um… I'm not quite sure. He left in another car for some after-party." Bonnie confessed

"What? He did not ditch you." I said outraged ready to tackle my brother the next time I saw him.

Bonnie shrugged, "It's fine. He stayed with me the whole night until the last dance. I could tell he wasn't having a good time but he smiled anyway."

"I'm sorry, Bonnie."

"S'okay, it was nice night anyway."

I couldn't help but wonder about my little brother's whereabouts. He didn't know many places in Mystic Falls or people, all he knew was Northridge our home town, about an hour south of here.

Damon made the first big drop-off at the after-party before making stops at actual houses. I walked Stefan to the door of the house party to say my goodbye.

"I'm still super sorry Stefan." I said as we walked next to each other.

"It's fine Elena." He commented seeming a lil' jumpy. I walked him to the door mat just before the threshold.

"Well have fun. I'll see you history." I said before he grabbed me and kissed on my lips. I didn't have time to react or dodge his advances so my instincts reacted in a different way, I slapped him. Instead of flight my body had apparently decided to fight.

"O my god! I'm so sorry." I gasped at the realization of what I just did. Stefan rubbed his jaw. It had a slight red mark on it.

"I didn't mean to I swear. It just happened." I continued

Stefan smiled awkwardly, "Umm… its fine. I took you by surprise." Well that answered Thursday's question. I definitely did not like surprises.

We said our awkward goodbyes before he walked inside the house and I walked back to the limo. The thought of music blasting my ears had me opening the passenger door instead of the walking to the back of the car.

I found Damon laughing hysterically in the driver's seat.

"What's so funny?" I asked

"The guy buys you dinner, takes you dancing then tries to kiss you and you SLAP him?" Damon said still laughing

"It's not funny Damon!" I argued but still took my seat in the much quitter front seat.

"Well it made my night." Damon said as he pulled out of the sidewalk.

Damon stopped laughing and teasing me at the next stop. It was Will's house. Anna walked hand and hand with him as they reached the doorstep. They both looked very content. Damon unlocked his door before I grabbed his hand.

"What are you doing?" I asked

"I'm just gonna say hi."

"Psh. Stay in the car Damon." I said sternly

"He better not try a Stefan." Damon stated seriously

"And what if he does?"

"No way! There should be law written, 'thou shall not kiss little sister in front older brother'." Damon responded

I laughed in a tired way. "Like a ten commandment?" I asked and he nodded, "Right because stealing, lying and killing are just as bad as kissing."

Damon rolled his eyes, "Well kissing Elena Gilbert seems pretty dangerous to me."

I playfully smacked him in his arm. Anna was walking back to the limo before Damon was able to get out.

"That's my girl" Damon stated in a proud way.

I shook my head, "I can see why Anna thinks you scare off all her guy friends."

"Hmph! She can kiss boys when she turns 30" Damon said with a smirk on his face.

I laughed uncontrollably, "Damon you're such a dad!"

…

Damon dropped Anna and I off next. He walked us to the door then quickly ran back to the car when I got the door opened.

When we finally got to my room I was beat. My bed was big enough for both Anna and I so I suggested we share it. Anna wanted to collapse on my bed as soon as we walked in. I convinced her about dental and facial hygiene and the routine woke her up a bit.

"Ugh! I'm so ready for bed! I danced like all night!" She said and then added, "I lost you in the crowd for a bit. How was your night?"

"Okayish, I got burned by the founder's day punch."

She laughed, "Happens to everyone. My brother is founder's punch veteran."

"Anna," I finally said mustering up the courage to finally ask her something that has been gnawing inside me, "How can you and Damon be siblings? I mean you guys… you guys don't look like each other."

Anna smiled like if she was amused, "You don't know? I'm surprised you haven't already asked someone or someone hasn't told you. The whole town knows about us."

I shrugged, "I figured you'd tell me when the time came but I guess curiosity got the best of me."

"Well if you can stay awake I'll tell you right now. It's a pretty long story, but I have to tell it from the beginning for you to understand. Just promise me one thing."

"Sure, anything"

"Don't feel bad for me or for Damon. He would hate that more than anything."

"I promise" I answered unknowingly. She turned around and sat on the bed before she began.

"I don't know the first part of the story too well. I wasn't there and Damon doesn't like to talk about it but I've pieced some of the story together with the help of Liz, "Anna said looking at her hands instead of me, "Liz started telling it to me like fairy tale but I knew it wasn't … Once upon a time, yes this was how she started it, there was a beautiful girl named Amelia Hart. She had porcelain skin that looked like ivory and blue eyes made of sapphires. And her hair was a mess of curls that gracefully passed her shoulders."

Damon's mom I immediately thought. I sat on the bed comfortably with a pillow over my stomach.

"She was a new girl in Mystic Falls and everyone fell madly in love with her but she only had eyes for Damon Salvatore and nobody ever loved her as much as he did."

I looked at her strangely

"Damon is named after his father. He's actually Damon junior but he doesn't like it. They call his dad Damon senior instead, but back to the story. Damon senior was madly in love with Amelia and after only a few months of knowing her he proposed. They were young but she said yes and within the year they had Damon. Everyone says Damon looks just like his mom."

I smiled at the story it seemed nice. Boy meets girl kinda thing, almost fairy tale like.

Anna took a deep breath before starting again, "From what I hear they were the perfect couple back then. They bought a house, Damon Senior was a businessman and Amelia was a housewife. But they both wanted more kids. Amelia had always wanted lots of kids but after some complications during birth the doctor told her it would be very hard for her to conceive again. She was able to get pregnant a few more times but miscarried a lot. Each miscarriage got harder and harder, until it started driving them apart. Damon once said he spent a lot time with his uncle Giuseppe because his parents argued a lot."

Anna grabbed a pillow for herself, "Things got better by time Damon turned eleven Damon says that was the best year of his childhood. But by time he turned twelve things went downhill again. Someone left a baby on the doorstep with a note stating that it was Damon's senior's child. After a few DNA tests they were able to confirm it was his kid. Amelia was devastated. Damon senior had cheated on her when times were tough. Eazy was two at the time."

My eyes shot open but I didn't interrupt. There was still so many questions that needed to be answered. Like when did Anna finally joined the family?

"They almost got a divorce but Damon Senior was persistent. He didn't want a divorce; he wanted her. He loved her so much. So Amelia didn't leave instead they tried to patch things up. Within the year they looked into adoption because Amelia really wanted a girl and Damon Senior couldn't or wouldn't deny her any wish. When they saw the wait period for adoption, they opted to foster care instead…. I was nine at the time. I was simply obsessed with _Leave it to Beaver_, _the_ _Donna reed show_, and_ Father knows Best _at the time_._ So I remember looking at them for the first time. All four of them. They looked so happy. They looked like the families on the TV but Amelia she was something else entirely."

Anna was now fully immersed in the story.

"She was so beautiful, I remember thinking she looked unreal. I loved it when she combed my hair and put me in pretty dresses. I wanted to be just like her. I could tell that she really wanted and tried to love Eazy but it was hard for her. He was living proof of her husband's infidelity."

She stopped for second as if reliving that part of her life.

"They started the adoption work quickly for me. I was adopted when I turned eleven. I loved the family. It was slightly broken but it worked well. I loved Damon senior, Damon, Eazy, and Amelia. They were amazing and I had a home. A real home with a mom and dad but the year I turned eleven was a hard one. Amelia got pregnant and when she reached the third trimester everyone got so excited, she had never been so far along. It was gonna be a girl."

Effy I thought. Anna breaths became slower.

"I remember smiling, the first time I saw effy. I was so happy. I thought this was her, this was my little sister and she was soooo beautiful, Elena. She looked just like Amelia. Damon was right next to me. He was so happy too... We didn't know. I swear we didn't know." Anna started to cry but she quickly wiped her tears away, "I remember seeing Amelia on the gurney. She looked so peaceful that I thought she was just sleeping. I ran to her but Damon Senior held me back. Then they placed a blanket over her face and wheeled her away. I remember crying, thinking that the nurses were the ones taking her away from us. Damon never cried; not once."

She got up to grab tissue from my bedside and I was on the brink of tears thinking about my own father and mother, but I held strong having my own feeling firmly buried deep in my subconscious.

"Damon senior hasn't been the same since. He can't keep a job, he can't stay sober. He can hardly look at Eazy let alone Effy. Damon was fourteen. Damon was already a bus boy at the grill and started moving some lawns, but we lost the house. Between Damon senior's sporadic paychecks and Damon's jobs we were able to find a one bedroom apartment. By the time Damon got be fifteen we were able to get a two bedroom apartment. Eazy and Damon share one room. Effy and I share the other. Damon Senior sleeps on the couch when he can find his way back home."

Anna seemed to be slowly pulling herself back to normal. I wanted to say sorry I wanted to hold her. I wanted to something but I had promised her that wouldn't feel sorry.

"So how are guys doing now?" I inquired needing something to say.

"We're good. You know hanging in there. The biggest problem is babysitting but today its bananas and pajamas day."

I was about to ask about bananas and pajamas but then a question popped into my head.

"Anna, why was Damon upset yesterday?"

Anna sniffled, "Damon… he thinks the worst of his father these days. When he came home from detention to get ready for work, he saw Damon Senior on the couch, and then he looked at my face. He thought the worst. He didn't believe my baseball story. He thought Damon Senior had another drunken episode and hit me but Damon Senior was calm on Thursday that's why I let him in."

"So Damon was just worried about all of you." I affirmed

"He thinks we're his responsibility. He's way too old for his own good. He hates it when we come up short for the month and we run low on food. Or when we can't do something because we're low on cash. He tries to provide us with everything but he's eighteen. He's not thirty…. Sometimes I really worry about him. I wonder if he's going college. It'll be a shame if he doesn't… Damon deserves it. He belongs there. He's too brilliant not to go."

Anna yawned at the last sentence and turned over her side of the bed. Then turned over my side of the bed to get ready for bed. We're both tired and ready to fall asleep, so I turned off the lights. Then a thought popped into my head.

"Anna where's Effy and Eazy, tonight? If Damon was working all night?"

She laughed in a tired way, "Like I said, its bananas and pajamas day. Like twice a month, Big Mike and Liz babysit for us, they say we need breaks from being grown-ups. So Eazy and Effy arrive in their pajamas and Big Mike makes them banana split sundaes. Hence, bananas and pajamas." As she slurred past the last sentence I could tell she was swiftly falling into sleep.

I smiled and drifted quickly into sleep myself, thinking of Effy, Eazy, and Anna. The mystery of how they came to be was solved but interest in them hadn't failed. Instead I wondered about their future. I also wondered about Damon Senior and Amelia Hart. I wondered about Damon and if ever thought about his future, or did he think he would be in his thirties when he finally got to live his life and Effy was all grown up?


	10. Girl meets brother

**Sorry about not updating sooner, I was outta town …**

Dreams are our secrets. They are hidden from the world and they exist only in our minds unless we choose to share them. Then on some nights our dreams let our imaginations live out our most exquisite wishes. Having fallen asleep thinking about my new friend Mr. Damon Salvatore, I found my dreams consumed by his presence. So it was unfortunate when I felt someone pulling me from them.

"Elena, " I heard Anna loudly whisper. I tried to ignore her but she gently nudged me when I didn't respond. I peeked at my alarm clock. It was five in the morning.

"Go away" I told her and shut my eyes, "It's too early"

"Elena, I hear someone down stairs."

I listened carefully for a moment, I didn't hear anything. So I ignored her.

"Elena! They could be robbers" she insisted

I took a deep breath in before responding, "I'm too tired… let them take what they want. If we're lucky maybe they won't come upstairs."

"Elena" She whined with her hand still nudging my arm. I rolled my eyes but she didn't see since I wasn't facing her.

"Fine, let me check." I said and got up from the bed. My body felt like it weighed a million pounds as I lifted myself from the bed. I rubbed my eyes and stretched my arms but I still felt more than half asleep.

As I walked to my bedroom door, Anna jumped in front me. "What are you doing? You need a weapon or something." She reprimanded me with one hand on her hip.

I yawned before I reached for a shoe in my closet.

"Really Elena? A shoe? We're not squishing a bug."

I looked at my shoe questionably and then answered, "It's a stiletto they can dangerous."

Anna sighed, "No we need a baseball bat or something like that."

I shrugged and entered my bathroom. I found my loofa on a stick and decided, in my sleep haze, that it looked remarkably like a baseball bat. Anna entered the bathroom after me.

She looked at me suspiciously as I showed her my new 'weapon'.

"Elena! You're not taking this seriously!" She scolded me again. She took initiative and began to search my bathroom for an appropriate 'weapon'. She quickly found a monkey wrench that I had recently used to tighten some leaky pipes.

"Okay let's go!" She said and pushed me out the door. As we quietly descended the stairs I loosely held on to my loofa as Anna held on tight to the wrench at eye level.

Then I began to hear some sounds. The recognition woke me up faster than a cold shower could have. I raised my loofa to eye level and shoved Anna behind me. She protested slightly but I held a finger in front of my lips to quiet her.

We heard the sounds from the kitchen so we headed in that direction. When I peeked around the corner I saw that the robber was taking food from our refrigerator and stuffing his face. The robber was stealing our food! Really? What a shame he hadn't picked another house since Aunt Jenna's grocery list was filled with frozen waffles and TV dinners.

Anna and I tiptoed closer to the robber, using the light from refrigerator as our guide. The refrigerator door covered his face so he didn't see us coming. As I approached him, I raised my loofa so that I could strike him with enough power.

My strike only caused him to slightly bounce from the force. Anna's blow soon followed and it struck him on the lower back. The robber fell to floor but I recognized his voice as he yelled "OW!"

"Jeremy? Did you just get home?" I asked incredulously

"O my god are you okay?" Anna answered dropping her weapon.

Jeremy got up slowly but kept himself hunched over while he rubbed his back.

"OW! What was that for?" He asked instead of answering our questions

"Sorry Jeremy we thought you were a robber." Anna quickly answered in a distressed way. She had clearly used a lot force behind the blow and now that she knew it was Jeremy she deeply regretted it.

"Stealing food?" he questioned us

"Yea sorry Jer, but really it's five in the morning we didn't expect it to be you." I said and the stench suddenly reached my nose. It was a mixture of weed and booze.

I immediately turned to look at Anna and thanked the low lighting. I assumed Jeremy's eyes were a promising red. "Hey Anna, can you Give Jeremy and I a minute."

"Sure" Anna said before she left the kitchen

when she was out of earshot I immediately asked, "Where were you?"

"In Northridge" Jeremy said while closing the refrigerator door. He looked ready to bolt. I stopped him before he reached the threshold by blocking the exit with my body. I switched on the light when he stopped in front of me.

My suspicions were correct. I could tell Jeremy had bloodshot eyes even though he tried to avoid eye contact. His hair was a mess, his shirt had mystery stains. He looked like a wreck.

"Jeremy, you did not just drive an hour to get high and drink beer?" I accused

"So what if I did? At least I have good friends there."

"Which friends? Like Vicki? She's bad news Jer." I told him sternly

"She's your best friend's sister."

"Yea her polar opposite brother!" I loudly argued

"Shh! You're going to wake up Jenna" he countered

I stared at him with the only ferocity I could muster

He titled his head and gave me his own look. "It's too early for this conversation Elena" he continued

"Fine, but this conversation is not over." I loudly whispered and lifted my arm so that he could pass. He left without another world.

I closed my eyes in an effort to find sanctuary then flicked off the light and made my way upstairs. I returned to bed mad but sleep still found me in my tired state.

…

When I woke up I immediately looked at my clock. It was ten in the morning. I looked over to Anna and found her sound asleep. So I got out of bed cautiously to minimize my shuffling.

I made my way into the bathroom to wash my face and used a white towel to dry it afterwards. When I finally looked at myself in the mirror, I found my mother staring back at me and froze for a second. I touched the reflection hesitantly, afraid of it. My father's words crept into my head, "You like your mother more and more every day."

I gulped in response to the emotional attack. I quickly closed my eyes and erased the memories as quickly as possible and pushed them to the far depths of mind and locking it in its place. When I opened my eyes again I saw my own reflection. I felt relieved and left the bathroom hastily.

I looked at the last two boxes I had yet to unpack and decided to take out my laptop. I hadn't taken it out in awhile. I placed on my desk and opened turned it on as I sat on my office chair.

Today was not starting off well I decided.

Then the onslaught of emotions began again as I looked at my screensaver. It was picture of my parents and I. My mother was hugging me from one side while my father was hugging me from the other. We were all smiling maybe even laughing. Jeremy had taken it last year on my birthday. I freaked and slammed my laptop shut. I felt my breath get louder and out of control. My heart began to hurt in an excruciating way. I got up from my desk to get farther away from my laptop.

My breath slowly started to normalize but my head was bursting with memories. I slipped my fingers into my hair and held tight. The memories had to stop; I had put them away for a reason. I couldn't handle them. They were all consuming. I tried again and locked them in place.

Then I heard, "Elena, are you okay?"

I relaxed my face and let out go of my hair before I turned to face Anna. "Yea, I'm fine. I just have a hangover."

She believed me instantly. "Well good thing your Aunt Jenna is making breakfast. Pancakes always make Damon feel better."

I looked at her strangely then smelled the bacon. "But my Aunt Jenna doesn't cook."

I put on my slippers and we both made out way down stairs. I heard the doorbell ring before we could reach the last step so I answered it.

"Hey Elena, Hello Anna."

It was Alaric. "Hey Ric! Jenna is making breakfast!" I told him with a smile plastered on my face

He looked me strangely, "She cooks?"

I shrugged, " I guess so."

All three of us rushed into the kitchen. We found Aunt Jenna holding onto a spatula for dear life as she stared intently at pancakes on a skillet. Damon was on the counter next to the stove watching her.

She turned around when she heard us and I noticed her 'kiss the chef' apron.

"Good morning! Damon is helping me make breakfast!" She said overzealously

We all quietly giggled and Alaric stepped forward and obliged the apron's demands.

Aunt Jenna smiled before quickly becoming embarrassed and turning to look at the pancakes.

"Can I flip them now Damon? They look ready!" She said shuffling her feet in place.

Damon nodded his and quickly got off the counter to hug me and then pick up his sister in a bear hug.

"Damon you're suffocating me!" Anna joked and he put her down

Alaric grabbed an empty plate for Aunt Jenna to place her finished pancakes.

Jenna quickly placed them on the plate then Alaric looked at her expectantly. "Jenna do you remember what day it is?"

"Sunday, why?" She asked. She grabbed the pancake plate and headed to the dining table. We all followed.

The table was already full of eggs, bacon and hash browns, the right meal for an impending heart attack.

"Jenna, it's the September 15th. Our Date?"

Jenna's eyes widen as well as mine but for entirely different reasons. For me it was the realization that September 30st was coming soon. A date I definitely wanted to skip.

Aunt Jenna's eye widening was explained a moment later. "O it slipped my mind. Damon came early to pick up his sister and when he found out she was still sleeping he offered to make breakfast. And god knows these kids need a decent meal with my lack of cooking skills. But give me 20 minutes, I just need to change."

Alaric nodded and they shared a quick kiss before she quickly shrugged off her apron and ran off. Damon and Anna joined me as I sat down to eat. Anna sat across from me while Damon had taken the empty seat next to me.

As soon as I had my plate filled I asked, "So Alaric where are you taking my Aunt?"

"The Forbes vineyard, for wine tasting." He responded with a big grin

"O la, la how romantic" Anna added she took a bite of a piece of bacon.

"I've been planning it for awhile now. First a walk in the park, then lunch at Anastasia's, followed by the wine tasting " Alaric added

"I didn't you had it in you Mr. Saltzman." Damon commented with a tilted grin.

"Mr. Salvatore, I'll let you know that I can be a very romantic man." Alaric stated. I giggled as I poured syrup all over my pancakes.

"I guess the monotone teacher in history class is a cover." Damon asked rhetorically

Alaric shook his head, "Some people find my lectures quite simulating Mr. Salvatore."

I handed the orange juice to Damon and for a brief moment our fingers lightly brushed. He didn't seem to notice as he continued the conversation. "Well you're lucky you have me to tell you the cold hard truth."

Alaric let out an exasperated breath, "So did you ever take the SATs?"

Anna laughed, "Mr. Saltzman you literally stalked Damon all the way to the testing location. You know he did."

Alaric laughed, "Well your brother is very smart, I just wanted to make sure he went through with it. So how did you do?"

Damon wagged his hand to say okay.

"He got a 2340!" Anna gleamed

"What! Damon that's amazing. You hadn't even studied" Alaric spat. Apparently calling him Mr. Salvatore went out the window.

Damon shrugged as he rearranged his food on his plate. I looked in Damon in awe.

"Where's Jeremy?" Damon asked trying to divert the question

"Damon you have to let me help you with the applications. With your grade point average and that SAT score you can get in anywhere in the country." Alaric pleaded

Damon coughed, "I got it Ric, and I don't need the help."

I saw Anna's face frown. Aunt Jenna came in soon after. She was wearing a simple sun dress but Alaric still looked at her if she was the only woman in the world. Before they said their goodbyes, Aunt Jenna told me to behave myself while Alaric whispered into Damon's right ear.

When they left it was just Damon, Anna and me.

"So how was the sleepover? Any pillow fights?" Damon joked

Anna rolled her eyes, "No we pretty much crashed when we got home."

"I feel bad for Elena. You snore… loudly"

Anna's mouth opened wide, "Whaaat! No way! Do I?" she asked me

"No you don't. " I offered but really I had no idea. I was knocked out cold for most of the night.

"What about Elena? Does she snore?" Damon teased

I heard Jeremy walk in because of his heavy steps, he was the one who answered the question "No she sleep talks."

"No I don't!" I protested turning around to see his face. He had changed his shirt but he still on last night's slacks.

"Yea you do, yesterday morning when I tried to wake you up, you just kept repeating, 'stefan...stefan'"

"Ewww!" Anna said with her nose scrunched

"Wow Elena, and here I thought you weren't interested in my cousin." Damon joked with a smirk on his face. O great….

It could have been possible since Stefan was in my dream but in this context it sounded like my dream starred him. I let the teasing go since arguing the truth was not an option at the moment.

"Whatever, so you mind telling me about your little road trip last night?" I started staring down my little brother

Jeremy rolled his eyes, "What's there to tell?" he said as he sat next to Anna. She scrunched her nose in distaste.

"Eww Jeremy you smell like skunk." She protested. Damon looked at Jeremy suspiciously.

"That's the smell of weed Anna. He also reeks of alcohol." Damon said looking at Jeremy very seriously

Jeremy smiled awkwardly

"You shouldn't have gone to see Vicki." I protested

Jeremy shrugged not daring to look toward Damon who was sitting next to me. "At least I keep in touch with old friends. I saw Matt too. He said you never returned any of his calls."

A pang of guilt washed through me.

"Who's Matt?" Anna asked cutting up her pancakes.

"A friend from back home" I answered with eyes glued to my plate in remorse.

"Her best friend from back home" Jeremy added for the extra sting. Damon looked in my direction, deciding something once again.

Then he turned around to look Jeremy and said, "Jeremy go back stairs. Change your pants, take a shower, you reek."

Jeremy looked at his full plate and then looked up at Damon again. Damon's face was not friendly to say the least. Jeremy stubbornly got up and walked back upstairs.

The rest of the breakfast I stayed quiet as Anna talked about her night to Damon. Damon seemed please to hear her enthusiasm. I used the time to pan over my guilt about not returning any of Matt's calls. The meal was over before I could tell.

I told Anna to leave her plate and I could wash it. She bolted upstairs to get ready, mentioning that bananas and pajamas would be over at noon.

Damon snuck up behind me as I began to put away Aunt Jenna's breakfast mess.

"Let me help you" he said and I jumped in surprise.

"Sorry didn't mean to scare you." He said with a smile. I bit my lip expecting my heart to slow down but it didn't.

"It's okay, I've got this." I responded

He shook his head and grabbed the sponge from my hand. Before I protested he put his finger over my lips, "I helped make the mess, I'll help clean up."

I grabbed a dry towel and started drying the dishes he scrubbed. "So what are your plans for the day?' he asked with out looking in my direction

"Um… not much. Last minute homework… doing calculus is gonna blow."

He finally turned his face and gave me a smile. The color of his eyes would always shock me.

"I can tutor if you like."

My eyes widen a smidge, "You have time?"

"Yea, just after school before four when I pick up Effy and Eazy."

I frowned, "But not today?"

"Um… I have work but come by after 3 today. Nobody comes in after that time plus my boss Trevor doesn't work on Sundays."

"You sure?"

He smiled even wider. "It'd be less boring with you there."

"Okay, I'll bring my books." I beamed

…

Caroline had come by around one in the afternoon to give me my new cheerleading uniform. I would have to wear it tomorrow since she insisted that all the cheerleaders wear their uniforms on game days and pep rallies. I sighed as I peeked at it but that was problem for another day. Around two I started to ardently clean my room. I was finished by two-thirty but it was still too early so I decided I had time to call Matt.

He didn't answer so I left him a voice message telling him that I missed him. I had lost contact with him in a dark part of my life that I was still digging my way out of. I remember refusing to talk to anyone but Jeremy for a whole week after my parent's funeral. Then by the next week Aunt Jenna was fighting for custody since I'm still seventeen. So in the mess I had forgotten to call him and now I just felt guilty because it had been a month since we last spoke.

By two forty five I was trying on my third outfit. I wanted to look effortless without looking frumpy. I settled on my fourth outfit a pair of dark jeans with a light pink sweater. It was a v neck so a bit of my lace shirt peeked through. I was out the door by two fifty five and walking to grill.

The place looked closed by how empty it was. I almost called Damon when he suddenly popped out of the kitchen door.

He smiled that special Damon smile as he looked at me. It made me feel like I walked in naked and hadn't realized it. I looked down just in case I forgotten something simple like pants.

Nope I had pants so I walked over to sit at the bar.

"You made it, now you can keep me company." He told me

"Actually I'm here to use you again" I teased

He laughed, "Sadly I don't seem to mind."

I looked down and busied myself by taking out my books. Damon had on a clean apron and a white crew neck shirt. With his hair slightly ruffled, he didn't look like the GQ model he was the night before but everything about him still screamed for attention.

He grabbed a chair from behind the bar and rested his chin in his hands. Someone came in a second later. It was a middle-aged man with balding hair. He walked up to the opposite side of bar. Damon was about to get up when Liz popped out of the kitchen door.

"I got this Damon. You're still eighteen you can't serve liquor" Liz told him with a wagging finger.

So Damon smiled and got back on his stool on the employee side of the bar.

"So what don't you get?" Damon asked

I smiled, "Pretty much everything."

Damon's smile tugged one side of his mouth, "Well then I guess we'll be here for a long time."

I smiled weakly, "Sorry."

"Like I said I really don't mind."

…

Calculus was certainly not my calling I realized very quickly but I never had any suspicious that it would be. Damon, however, was very patient with me. He never seemed annoyed at my slow pace or my thousands of questions. He actually looked pretty happy sitting across from me.

The tutoring was good except for one thing. Damon was extremely distracting. It wasn't just the fact that his face was gorgeous but also the fact that he did distracting things. Like absentmindedly trace my left hand as worked on a problem. Or play with my hair as he answered one my million questions. Every time he touched me I felt like I was on fire and he looked at me as if the touch was nothing but normal.

When a customer finally came the waiter handed Damon the order. Damon kissed the inside hand again and left. It was the same gesture he had done last night. It was strange to kiss someone on their palm I thought. However, it was Damon who had done it so I let it be. He whispered to Liz before he went into the kitchen.

Liz began to approach me and I shifted a bit in my seat. For some odd reason, I felt like I was about to meet Damon's mom. "Elena, Right?" She said with a smile.

The woman was possibly in her fifties but she kept fit. She had short blond hair and black tank top that showed a few tattoos.

"Yes." I answered shyly

"I'm Liz. Damon says to keep you company, he doesn't want you to get lonely before he get back."

I smiled. "It's okay. I don't mind being alone. I actually I'm gonna head out soon."

The lady almost frowned. "Why?"

"Um… I just finished my last problem and it's almost six so I have to get back for dinner." I said as I started to pack.

Liz shook her head, "Let Damon make you dinner. I know Jenna. You'll probably end up having grilled cheese sandwiches if you go home."

I laughed because that definitely a possibility. "I don't have any money." I admitted

Liz shook her head again, "Damon wouldn't charge you."

"I can't have another free meal."

Liz smiled, "Don't make me get Damon. He can be very convincing when he wants to be."

I gave in soon but as soon as I ordered my alfredo pasta a crowd of people walked in. I didn't get to see Damon the entire night. Liz stuck by me like glue as I had dinner.

"So how did meet Damon?" she asked me when the bar had calmed down.

"Umm… calculus class." I said preferably leaving out the first time I met him.

"So you're the new girl? How's mystic high?"

"Good, I'm a cheerleader now." I said trying to sound less dull.

"Really? I pegged you for something different."

I shrugged taking a bite of my pasta.

"So are you going to Eazy's game this Wednesday? It's his championship game."

"O, I wasn't invited."

"Well I'm inviting you. it'll be fun and Eazy is really good."

"Okay, I just hope I can make it."

Liz smiled and I decided to flip the 21 questions on her instead.

"So how did you and Big Mike meet?"

"O about fifteen years ago. After my divorce, I spent some time in California and met him at party where he catered. Then we started randomly seeing each other, then purposely seeing each other. Then after a while … I don't know exactly when but we fell madly in love with each other. I moved back here to raise a family and take care of my mom. She passed away a few years ago but we still want to raise our family here."

"I'm sorry for your loss." I answered. Then she took my right hand and held it tight.

"Losing a loved is hard. You should know that talking about it is better than keeping it bottled inside."

I simply nodded because I was still afraid to talk about my own feelings. I also had to stay strong for my brother and Aunt. Sooner or later my feelings were going to catch up to me because I was getting tired of running. Plus with September 30th coming so soon, I had to deal with it before it back fired.

My phone rang before Liz could say another word. I looked at caller id, it was Matt.


	11. Girlfriend meets boyfriend

I had woken up in a pretty good mood because I had finally reconciled with Matt. However, the morning went south when I received a text from Caroline.

_Remember 2 wear ur uniform_

Blehhhhh…. was my reaction. After I took a shower and began to comb my hair, I stared at my outfit like it was arch enemy. Surely the shirt would not cover my midriff. It would be bare. The skirt looked pretty short but the slits are what scared me the most. I took a deep breath before I considered the fact that twelve other girls would be wearing the same outfit. I wouldn't be alone.

I looked at myself in the mirror with my arms crossed in front of belly. Yup… today would be one of those days.

The day continued to be 'one of those days' when I tried to wake up Jeremy only to have two pillows thrown at my face. Those few days of 'good' Jeremy had proven to be too short. I left Jeremy in peace when he got up and locked his bedroom door.

While I walked out of the house and down the street I felt extremely self-conscious. Some men whistled others honked. I felt like I was in that dream where you suddenly look down and find yourself stark-naked. I felt extremely relieved when I finally reached the school. The uniform itself held its own power as I walked down the halls with no one bumping into me. This was a huge bonus in my opinion. I got to my locker in no time.

As I began to turn the knob on my lock, I felt someone lift my skirt. It frightened me so much that I jumped. I held my chest as I caught my breath and stared down the perpetrator.

"Nice outfit you got there." Klaus whispered in my ear

"What the hell, you perve!" I yelled and shoved him as hard as I could. He didn't get very far.

"Just admiring, what you're flaunting." He joked then blew a kiss. A moment later, I saw him thrust into the lockers.

"Get lost Klaus, before you really piss me off." I heard Damon say. He didn't say it in his normal voice. His voice was much harsher and more brutal than when he spoke to me.

Klaus cheeks drew in as he glared at Damon. Then he turned his attention to me and winked. I felt my face scrunch up and my fists ball up.

When he was gone, I began to throw my books angrily in my locker.

"Are you okay?" Damon asked me. I turned around to face him but I hadn't noticed that he was so close. Our faces were inches apart. I took a deep breath to relief my anger and my anxiety.

"Yea, I'm fine. Thanks." I responded

"You aren't mad at me are you?" He pushed

I shook my head, "No, I just really, really dislike Klaus. He just puts me in a bad mood."

"Well then I should try to cheer you up." he insisted stepping away from me and allowing me to close my locker. Damon was way too comfortable with touch and proximity. That'd be something I'd get used to, I hope. Or my heart my might explode much sooner than later.

"Are you going to tell me joke?" I asked already feeling my bad mood lift. However I still felt the necessity to tug at my skirt even though it didn't make it any longer.

Damon put his arm around me as we headed to the cafeteria.

"I don't know any good ones." He confessed

"Well then tell me bad one. Sometimes they're better than the good ones."

Damon looked thoughtful as I looked over the breakfast menu.

"Effy told me one last night. She said what do you call a pig that does karate?"

I thought for a moment. Nothing came to mind besides the fact that I wanted a breakfast burrito.

"I give up, what do you call a pig that does karate?"

Damon smiled, "It's lame."

"Damon you started the joke, now you have to finish it."

Damon looked like his face was about burst out laughing, "You call it a pork chop."

I giggled, "Yea that was pretty lame but I think it did the trick."

I ordered the burrito and we both sat a nearby bench.

"So you're cheerleader now?"

I looked at my outfit and blushed, "Yeah… I guess the outfit gave it away."

Damon looked out into the crowd as I started to eat my burrito. "I think every guy in this room noticed the outfit."

My eyebrows shot up with a mouth full of burrito. I looked around and felt like something on display.

I gulped the burrito down without properly chewing it. "Maybe they're staring at you."

Damon looked at me and shook his head, "nope I'm sure they're looking at you."

I cringed and began to cover myself with my arms.

"You keep doing that. Are you cold?" he asked

"Umm… no but I just feel naked in this outfit."

Damon grinned, "Well you pull it off better than half the girls on the squad."

I smiled weakly and tugged at my skirt again.

Damon rolled his eyes and shrugged off his leather jacket. He handed it to me. "Here, you really don't need it but I rather not have you feeling naked."

I quickly took it. It was too big but it did the trick.

"Good now every guy can stop gawking at you."

I laughed, "I'm not your sister Damon. It's not your responsibility to keep guys from looking at me."

Damon nodded, "I know but you're my friend and that gives me the right to want to kick their asses for being such perves."

I rolled my eyes and the warning bell rang. I got up to empty my tray when Damon gave me a strange look.

"What?" I asked feeling awkward, "Do I have something on my teeth?"

Damon laughed, "No but my jacket is longer than your skirt. If I didn't know any better, I'd think you forgot to wear pants today."

I scrunched my face again and looked down. He was right but if I didn't hurry I'd be late.

…

In history, Caroline reprimanded me for wearing a leather jacket over my cheerleading outfit. I wasn't showing good school spirit, so I had to take it off. But when class was over I quickly put it back on.

I liked wearing the leather jacket; it had a very faint but noticeable woody and spicy smell. I could smell it all day and never get sick of it. Plus it somehow kept me in a good mood the entire day.

By lunchtime, I avoided the indoor cafeteria in order to avoid Caroline. I didn't want to take off the jacket. I had packed some lunch so I quickly snuck into the outdoor cafeteria. I found Anna eating a sandwich on a table.

"Anna!" I yelled

She laughed, "Elena, where are your pants?"

I looked down, I had zipped up the jacket so the effect looked even more prominent. I quickly unzipped the jacket to reveal the cheerleading outfit.

"Is that Damon's?" she asked

"Uh yea… I saw him this morning."

Anna shook her head "Figures he'd want to cover you up…"

She never finished her sentence because Damon wrapped his hand over her mouth.

"Hey Elena" he said

"Damon let go of your little sister." I scolded Damon.

Damon slowly let go his sister, "Anna just talks too much."

Anna rolled her eyes, "Whatever"

I sat down next to Anna on the bench. We both faced the crowd instead of the table. Damon made himself comfortable by laying on the bench with his head on my lap.

"Am I good pillow?" I joked as he snuggled closer

"Nope, but you'll do. I'm tired." He teased.

I pulled out my usual bag of grapes. I took one to eat then offered Damon one. He took it from my fingers with his mouth.

I saw Will come in moments later. Anna had called him over.

I was playing with Damon when Will approached us. Damon was trying to eat the grape but I kept pulling it away from him. So, he grabbed my hand instead of using his mouth.

"That's cheating." I protested

Damon crunched the grape in victory, "Never said I played fair."

"Hey Anna, Elena… Damon." Will announced as he cautiously sat next to Anna. This was the first time Damon noticed him so he tried to get up. I kept him down.

"Hey Will, you excited about the game tonight?" I asked as I held Damon down with one arm. He didn't struggle for too long. I saw Anna mouth Thank You.

"Yea definitely. You coming Anna?"

Anna smiled, "Well I am in the band."

"O yea… forgot. I guess I'll see you there." Will said with a hopeful smile.

Damon rolled his eyes but since he was on my lap nobody else saw it.

"So Will… you know Anna's my sister right?" Damon stated more than asked

"Umm… yeah. I know." Will said taking out a bag of goldfish.

"Good, I just wanted to point out that I'll kick your ass if you do anything to her." Damon said with a devious smile. I shook my head. Damon could never be a normal big brother. Will smiled nervously as Anna looked like she wanted to crawl into a hole and hide.

"More grapes?" Damon asked with his special smile still looking up at me from my lap.

I crouched over him to whisper in his ear. "Then be nice."

Damon scoffed, "I am, if I were being mean I would have told him to get lost."

I returned upright and took out another grape to place it in his mouth.

"I think I kinda like this. Makes me feel serviced." Damon provoked. I shoved him on the shoulder but not enough to push him off.

When I turned I saw Anna looking at me suspiciously. She was looking at Damon then titling her head a few times. I got the hint, she wanted me to take Damon away so that she could have alone time with Will.

"Hey damon, I need to get something from my locker… come on."

"What do you need me for?" he asked as I got up and he fell off. He caught himself and as soon he got up I grabbed his forearm and pulled him toward the locker hall. He didn't protest… much.

…

When we finally got to my locker, the locker halls were empty. I started to replace my books while Damon leaned on the locker next to mine.

"So why did you need to drag me over here? What did you need to get?" Damon asked when I closed my locker

I rolled my eyes, "A new personality. You were embarrassing Anna."

Damon shook his head but kept a smile.

"You brought me here so that Will could put the moves on my sister?" he asked then touched my hair. "O Anna you have such pretty hair."

His impression of Will's voice was spot on. Will's voice was very low and husky and he wasn't the brightest in the bunch.

I rolled my eyes. "Yes I did, so that Anna could say," I said while grabbing his bicep, "O Will what big muscles you have."

My impression of Anna was horrible. It sounded like a bad impression of Marilyn Monroe because my voice was few octaves too high.

Damon half laughed at my impression of Anna and continued his impression of Will, "Yea I workout. You know I do football."

I put both arms around his biceps and snuggled closer, "Aww Will you're so interesting with your football and your dashing good looks."

Damon laughed and we began to walk back to the cafeteria. "Well then you should be my girlfriend."

"O I don't know about that. My brother wouldn't like that." I said trying to act as innocent as possible.

"I'll take of your brother; I still think you should be my girlfriend."

"And why do you want to be my boyfriend so badly?" I asked

Damon turned to look at me directly and brushed my long hair behind my ear. I didn't expect him to but before I knew it he had kissed me on the lips. The kiss was sudden and short. The warning bell rang a second later. I could hear the crowd of people start to fill the locker hall. I looked at him shocked and ready for an explanation.

Damon gulped, "So that I kiss you anytime I want."

He let me go a moment later and got lost in the crowd of people. I didn't immediately notice that he had answered my previous question. I just stood there, lost for a moment.

…

After English class I noticed that I had not heard a word of my teacher's lecture. The class had passed by so fast. I walked into my Math class looking for Damon. He had taken a seat in front of the class for a change. There were also no seats available around him so I took a seat in the back.

I had a hunch Damon was ignoring me but when class was over he came over to my seat.

"Hey Elena."

"Hey Damon, umm…"

"Are we still on for your torturing session?"

I nodded without a word and we felt the class in silence. Damon didn't wrap his arm around me like his usual self. The whole walk to the library felt slightly awkward. When we finally got there the place was empty. We sat down at the first table we found and I started to take out my books.

"Elena?"

"Yea, what's up?"

"I just… wanted to get something out in the air."

"Sure, what did you want to tell me?"

"I got caught up in the moment. I didn't mean to … kiss you. I was…. It was a mistake. I'm sorry, really sorry."

My heart felt like it dropped. In my wildest dreams I hoped for a profession of undying love or wanting. Not 'hey sorry I kissed you, it was a giant mistake'

"It's okay. We were just playing pretend." I said with a hesitant smile.

"Good, I don't want to lose you as a friend."

I smiled and opened my book. "I like you as a friend too."

The librarian shushed us and we stayed pretty quiet for the rest of the time.

I tried to finish our tutoring session as soon as possible. Partly because I didn't want to be near Damon at the moment and partly because Caroline was blasting my phone with texts about practicing some cheers before the big game at 7.

…

"Elena! Pay attention!" Caroline said as she showed me the last cheer for the seventh time. Most of the cheers were simple but my head was just out of it.

"Sorry" I apologized when my attention was caught. I was dosing off a lot. Thinking about Damon was proving to be a consuming pastime.

"It's okay, you're good. We'll just stick to the five basic cheers. You'll just have to skip the halftime show." Caroline explained

I agreed because I really wasn't prepared to learn an entirely new routine. After an hour of practicing something over and over, we finally sat down to watch the JV football game and the JV cheerleading squad. Football games were apparently a family event at Mystic Falls.

The varsity squad cheered from the sidelines. I sat next to Bonnie who was surprisingly a big fan of football. I learned a lot about strategy and techniques from her. Sadly any absorbed information would be lost before morning.

When seven o'clock came rolling around, we quickly took our places in front of the bleachers. The night was actually pretty fun thanks to the interactive crowd. The only thing wrong was the plummeting temperature. I was freezing in my uniform but all the girls toughed it out so I followed quota.

…

When the game was over I took my time gathering my stuff. There were too many people rushing to parking lot and I didn't want to be caught in the middle of fuss. I saw Anna holding hands with Will in the giant crowd. I was guessing he was going to drive her home when he helped her into his trunk. They even gave the giant tuba a seat. Bonnie waited with me as the crowd dispersed.

"How did you like your first game?" She asked as I shrugged on Damon's jacket

"It was cold"

"Well that's a pretty jacket. Its look like… Damon's?" She guessed

"Yea he let me borrow it."

We started making our way out of the stadium toward the gate.

"You're not going out with him are you?" She asked but quickly followed, " 'cause he really did a number on Caroline."

I shook my head instead of answering. Damon had made it pretty clear he didn't want anything to do with me in the dating department. Just friends.

"Well good, you want a ride home?" She asked. I was thankful because it was ten at night but then I saw Damon leaning against his car staring right at me. Anna wasn't anywhere in sight so I guessed he was there to see me.

"Umm… I think I've got a ride." I answered Bonnie as she stared down Damon Salvatore.

"Okay… but be careful." She whispered before she hugged me.

I approached Damon tentatively.

"Hey" he said with a small smile

"Hi"

"I just wanted to say I'm sorry" he rushed

I looked at him angrily, "You don't have to keep saying that you're sorry Damon. I get it was a mistake, you just got caught up in the moment."

Now I wished I could catch up with Bonnie but she was already backing out of her parking space.

"Elena, no. I mean… god Elena. I want to be with you. I do but I can't."

I looked at him confused. He was starting to act bipolar.

"Why? Why don't you want to be with me?"

"Elena I want to be with you. That's not the problem. I want to be with you all the time. You're always in my thoughts. I'm always thinking about kissing you and now that I've kissed you I only want to do it again…. You should be kissed often, always, constantly."

"But not by you?" I spat back

"No, only by me." He said and grabbed my jaw with both his hands. He kissed me so desperately that I could only respond with the same tenacity. Whatever I was carrying dropped to the floor and he placed my back on the car door. My hands couldn't find a place so they just settled on pulling his shirt to bring him closer. He didn't release me for long time.

When he finally came up for air, he quickly put five feet between us. I needed to catch my breath so I let him go.

"I'm sorry. I'm really sorry Elena." He said again.

"For what? Was that a mistake too?" I asked still normalizing my breaths

"God it doesn't feel like it …but I have to stop doing that." He said brushing his hair back on both sides

"Why?"

Damon gulped, "Because I'm not supposed to thinking about you, Elena. I have Effy, Eazy and Anna to take care of. They're supposed to be my first thoughts in the morning not you. They're always gonna come first, they have to come first"

I looked at him with emotion that I couldn't pinpoint maybe because it was more than one feeling. Pity for his life, happiness for his thoughts about me, anger at his assumptions, surprise at this conversation and everything in between.

I could only pull myself to say "I'm not asking you to put me in front your family."

"I know but with you…. I can't treat you like Katherine. You aren't like her. I care about you too much."

"Why are you here Damon? Why are we having this conversation? Anna already left." I asked exasperated, thinking that I could have just gone home with Bonnie.

"Because… I was driving home and I saw the game. I knew Anna had a ride but then I thought about you and how I wanted to see you. I wanted to hear your voice and I wanted to kiss you again."

"You can't say things like that. You can't just be this way and not want to be with me 'cause I want to be with you, too. I think about you. So you can't do that and not want to be with me because it hurts me. You can't just kiss me and walk away. I can't handle that"

"And how do think I feel? I'm the reason we can't be together! Because my dad always plastered and my mom died so when I come home I can't just go to sleep. I have to make lunches, do laundry, balance the damn bank account, figure out how to pay for Anna's new uniform, figure out what to do for Eazy's parent-teacher conference but I can't just tell my drunk dad to that small thing for his son."

I"So where does that leave us?" I asked wanting an answer. Friends or more?

"I don't know."

In my darkest thoughts and most selfish thoughts, I knew exactly what I wanted to say. The words came out with my full permission. "We can try. Give this a chance, a small chance." I whispered because I wanted it but I sounded so selfish saying it out loud. I wanted a piece of him, I told myself not all of him. I couldn't take all of him. He already belonged to someone else.


	12. Girl meets Secret Place

**I have a strange idea on how I want this story to play out. Is alright if I tell you that this nowhere near the end but just the beginning…**

_"And how do think I feel? I'm the reason we can't be together! Because my dad always plastered and my mom died so when I come home I can't just go to sleep. I have to make lunches, do laundry, balance the damn bank account, figure out how to pay for Anna's new uniform, figure out what to do for Eazy's parent-teacher conference but I can't just tell my drunk dad to that small thing for his son."_

_"So where does that leave us?" I asked wanting an answer. Friends or more?_

_"I don't know."_

_In my darkest thoughts and most selfish thoughts, I knew exactly what I wanted to say. The words came out with my full permission. "We can try. Give this a chance, a small chance." I whispered because I wanted it but I sounded so selfish saying it out loud. I wanted a piece of him, I told myself not all of him. I couldn't take all of him. He already belonged to someone else._

Damon looked me as if he couldn't breathe. "And what if I'm no good at it. What if I ruin everything? I don't want to lose you."

I breathed in deeply thinking about the rumors. The hearts he had broken. The false promises he had given. My head was telling me that I couldn't handle anything like that. Especially not now, my heart had just lost two people I truly and wholly loved. My head yelled at me, 'No! Don't be so stupid'. Damon is a good friend, a very good friend. You can't afford to lose him now. There's no one else you can lean on.

My rib cage felt like it was expanding from emotion. Then the words came out, "You won't lose me but… I still want to try."

As soon as the words came out, I looked at him closely for his reaction. Was he… smiling? Damon freakin' Salvatore was smiling!

He pushed me gently back on the car and kissed me like if the world was going to end tomorrow. He gave me very little space and very little time to breathe. Everything was rushed with his lips but he kept his hands on my waist and didn't dare explore another inch. I appreciated that. I wanted to be with Damon but I had only known him for a week.

When he finally came up for air, he kept his forehead on mine. There was a big smile on his face even though his breath was jagged.

"I've literally wanted to do that since the moment I met you." He whispered

I laughed. "I think I wanted to slap you the first time I met you. I didn't like you very much back then," I said thinking about Jeremy and him by the dumpsters.

"And now?" he asked kissing me with less urgency

I grabbed his face and looked him in his aqua blue eyes, "And now I think I kinda ... sorta … maybe like you." I joked and kissed him with more urgency than he was giving me.

We lingered in the parking lot a little longer ignoring when the stadium lights turned off and the sprinklers came on. We didn't discuss much … maybe purposely because in reality we were taking a giant leap of faith. This could make or break us and talking about the details would only make it harder to leap.

As he drove to my house we road hand in hand, I looked down every time he gave me that incredible and irresistible smile. When we finally got to my house, he rushed to open my car door for me. I had a million butterflies in my stomach. I found that strange because we had already kissed.

He helped me out the car and gently touched my hand to encourage me to grab his. I smiled and happily obliged.

"So…" I started when we got to the front door

"So?" he repeated getting closer

"Are you my boyfriend Mr. Salvatore?" I asked coyly

Damon smiled, "If that means you can't date or kiss anyone else then yes"

I smiled, "So does that mean I can kiss you anytime I want?"

Damon's smiled got even wider. "Yes, anytime."

He gave me a sweet kiss good night and then kissed me on my palm. "Good night Elena."

"Good night Damon." I said and he hustled back into his car.

I got into my house finally noticing that my knees felt like jello. I could melt into a pile of pudding right now and be completely okay with it. Today was definitely not one of those days.

…

Seriously, people alive or born in the nineties should not be held accountable for the songs they choose to sing in the shower. The spice girls were addictive, and their songs were catchy plus I was in really good mood. I got ready fast since I had my clothes ready to go. I was wearing my favorite pair of jean shorts paired with a maroon one shoulder loose top.

Since Jeremy had ditched school yesterday, Aunt Jenna made the extra effort to drive us to school. We arrived only fifteen minutes before our first class. I practically jumped out of the moving car when Aunt Jenna dropped us off. Jeremy followed me into the locker hall.

"Why are you so excited?" Jeremy asked as I made my way down to my locker

"What do you mean?"

"Singing, smiles. You look happy… scary happy."

I rolled my eyes at him, "Can't I just be happy? You know good days are hard to find."

Jeremy raised his hands in defense, "No… I'm happy that you're happy. It's good, I just haven't seen you like this in a long time. It just seems strange…"

Damon came crashing into me a second later, kissing me fervently. He definitely did not care who saw us. He was actually seemed to relish kissing me in public.

"Daaammon," I whined. I was a little embarrassed about kissing him in public and in front of my brother

"Well that answers my question." Jeremy said with a one sided smile. He waved good bye and took off.

"Eeelenaaa" Damon said mimicking me

"We're not going to be a big PDA couple are we?" I asked before he kissed me again

"What's PDA? It sounds dirty …so maybe."

I laughed heartily and playfully tapped his upper arm. "It means Public Display of Affection." I answered already losing my breath under his kisses and needing to get to my locker. Damon grabbed my hand and walked me toward my locker a second later, maybe sensing my mood to get going.

"Well… I just wanted everyone to know that you're taken." He continued

I laughed and took out his jacket from my bag.

Damon shook his head and pushed it back. "No it looks better on you."

"But you always wear it." I argued

"Well then keep it safe," he whispered before he let me go and kissed me goodbye.

I quickly grabbed some notebooks and books from my locker before I rushed into history class.

…

I didn't notice the note being passed until Caroline suspiciously coughed. I discreetly picked it up and read it.

_OMG! Are u with Damon?_

I sighed, our PDA had definitely made headlines.

_Umm…. Yea I am. _I wrote back, thinking there was no sense in lying.

I pushed the note her way and quickly got an answer. _Well don't say I didn't warn you. It might seem warm and fuzzy in the beginning but hot and heavy burns out fast._

I bit the inside of cheek as I considered her comment. _Consider me warned _I wrote back.

_Okay then, fyi I hoping for the best and if Kat gives you any trouble text me_

I think this was the best response I could get from the head cheerleader. I was dating the ex that broke her heart and she wasn't jealous or petty. Instead she was wishing me luck and offering me help. Caroline was truly a nice person even if she was sometimes shallow.

…

I was caught in heated conversation with Bonnie at lunchtime about the stupid surprise bio quiz when I felt two arms wrap around my neck.

"Miss me?" Damon whispered as he kissed my cheek. His voice tickled in my ear

I giggled, "Only a little."

Bonnie tried to smile but she was wary of him. She was there for Caroline the entire relationship. She knew about his patterns.

"I'll catch you later Bonnie." I said as I followed Damon out to the other cafeteria. He quickly kissed me on the lips and we walked with mouths stuck together until we reached our usual table.

"Damon she has to breathe." I heard Anna joke. Damon chuckled as he let me go of my lips and held my hand instead.

"Hey Anna," I said shyly

Anna smiled widely. "Just for the record, I am team Elena," Anna said while giving me wink, "I'm happy seeing you guys together. Damon can stop yapping about you now and denying his mad crush on you."

I cringed in embarrassment but Damon looked unaffected.

We took a seat on far end of the table when Will came by.

I took out my sandwich and Damon took out his soda while we sat next to each other.

"So I was talking to Liz yesterday and she told me that you were thinking about going to Eazy's championship game." Damon inquired

"Umm… I have practice until five what time is at?" I asked

"five thirty" Damon said with a hopeful smile

"Well then I'm there. Have you found a new babysitter yet?"

Damon took a swig of his coke before answering, "Yeah, a senior named Rose. The kids like her. She seems nice."

"That's good." I said taking a bite of my sandwich

"Well I was thinking since I already have that day off that we could go on a … you know… a date?" Damon asked nervously

I laughed, "You nervous Damon? About asking your girlfriend on a date?"

Damon bit his lower lip, "I think the closest real date I've had was taking Caroline for ice cream."

I laughed again but noticed that his face was pretty serious. "Yes Damon. I'd love to go on a date with you." I said to put his worried face to rest.

Damon kissed me on the cheek and smiled that special smile. So far I liked this relationship, it felt good, really good.

…

My schedule was pretty tight when tutoring and cheerleading were back to back but I made it work. Studying with Damon was too much fun to pass up. Getting kisses as rewards instead of pats on the back was a definite upgrade.

Cheerleading however kicked my ass. Caroline had us running miles for a long time. Then we practiced the same routine until we could recite in our sleep. I was relieved when the clock stroke 5 and practice promptly ended. Caroline offered to take me home and I took up the offer.

When I got in her car I noticed that I had three texts waiting for me.

The first was a long text from Anna. _I heard you were going to Eazy's game. Eek I'm so excited! Damon is an assistant coach so you'll be sitting next to me. I'm making a poster! Wanna help?_

_Sure :) when? _I texted back

The next was from Jeremy. _Alaric is making dinner. Real food the Gilbert house!_

_Yum _was my response

Anna texted back before I could check the next message. _I can come over in 20. Rose works until 6 30_

_Sounds good_

The last text was from Damon. _Okay so I tried, but thinking about you is easier than trying not to_

_Cheesy _I texted back

I got a text back a second later, _But true_

I couldn't stop smiling at the text. Caroline looked me with a smile of her own when we reached my house.

"Like I said, I'm hoping for the best. Damon seems a lot different with you." Caroline admitted as she pulled the brakes.

"Thanks Care." I said as I got out of the car, "I'll see you later."

Caroline waved goodbye and took off.

…

Alaric was cooking burgers when I got in the house. They smelled really good.

"Hey Aunt Jenna, hey Ric." I said when I walked into the kitchen.

They both waved hi and I sat on the kitchen table with my Aunt. "Anna is coming over soon. We're making a poster for her brother."

"Why does Damon need a poster?" She inquired

I laughed, "No her little brother plays soccer. He has championship game tomorrow."

Aunt Jenna smiled, "Well either way, is anything going on between you and Damon?"

I smiled in embarrassment. This town was too small to keep a secret, "Jeremy told you?"

Aunt Jenna smiled but nodded, "Yea he did but I like Damon. Alaric tells me the boy is too smart for his own good. He seemed polite enough on Sunday. Plus I might be getting older but I'm not blind. The boy is hunk."

"Aunt Jenna! No one uses the word hunk anymore." I said and smiled as I waited for the earth to open up and swallow me whole.

"Well I'm glad you're adjusting well into the school."

The burgers were fantastic and the poster I made with Anna was over flowing with glitter. Most of the paint was blue but the poster had very girly flare to it. I caught up on some homework when she left. I went to sleep happy.

…

Wednesday morning, Jeremy and I were dropped off late. I didn't get to see Damon until lunch time. He wrapped his arm around me and kissed me on the head when he found me.

"I didn't see you this morning?"

"I was late." I confessed as we walked down to the outdoor cafeteria.

"I figured."

"So can I ask any details about our date?"

Damon shook his head, "It's a surprise."

I frowned and he laughed lightly

"Don't be so grumpy. It's a good surprise."

We sat down in our usual spot next to Anna.

"Elena! Our poster is going to be super awesome. Eazy was trying to peek at it the whole night."

I smiled, "Next time we'll leave it at my house." I stated as I took out some chips, "Hey Anna do you know where Damon's taking me tonight?"

Anna smiled deviously, "Yup but I'm sworn to secrecy. I'm in charge of Effy and Eazy while you're gone."

I looked at her with puppy dog eyes. "Come on Anna. I'll be your best friend." I answered almost singing.

Both Damon and Anna laughed. "Sorry Lena, Damon was pretty serious about keeping it a secret." Anna answered

….

When practice was over and I was sincerely beat, I quickly hopped into Bonnie's car. I took a quick shower when I got home and changed into a different outfit. I was going to Eazy's game then on a surprise date, so I had to find a good balance. I wore a pair dark tight jeans with a pretty white lace shirt. The accessories were kept to a minimum with silver earrings paired with an intricate silver bracelet.

Aunt Jenna let me borrow the car and Jeremy was riding with me. That worked in my favor since Anna had already kindly persuaded him to drive her and the kids back home after the big game. Anna and Jeremy were both sophomores but Anna hadn't turned sixteen yet. So she had no driver's license.

"So are you and Damon, serious?" he asked as I pulled out of the driveway.

I thought for a moment. "I'm not quite sure… I mean I've been with the guy for a day and I've known him for a week. I like him and he likes me. Beyond that only time will tell."

"Not to be ass or anything but I've heard his story. Do you really think there's any future with him?" Jeremy asked me seriously

It's been the question I've tried to avoid. I figured it was too early but sooner or later I'd have to think about it. If we got serious, I'd have to think about how I fit into his unusual teenage life. In some ways it was like Damon already had three children.

"Like I said, I've been dating the guy for a day. I'm not sure about anything right now. We're just going to take it day by day."

"Okay, sorry just asking." Jeremy admitted as we drove into the park's parking lot.

_Ring, ring._

My phone started ringing before I could get out, so Jeremy walked into field without me. It was Matt.

_Hey Elena!_

"Hey Matty what's up?"

_Nothing much. I just finished football practice and I wanted to see what you were up to_

"I'm actually at a kid's soccer game."

Matt laughed because it was highly unusual for me. _What are you doing there?_

"I'm kinda… at my…. Boyfriend's brother's game." I explained awkwardly

_What? You have a boyfriend. Already?_

I smiled but Matt obviously couldn't see. "Yeah, it's a sorta long story."

_It's that guy Damon you were talking about, isn't it?_

"How did you know?"

_Elena I've known you since we were eight and you pushed me into the sandbox. When you spent more than a minute trying to describe a certain guy's eye color it seemed pretty obvious_

I laughed. Matt knew me too well and crush on Damon was apparently that obvious. "So changing the subject, when are we going to hang out?"

_I was thinking Friday I could come over and we could have dinner and catch up._

"Sounds great," I said as Anna flagged me down the game had already started, "I'll text you later."

_K see you soon._

…

I was glad that the field had a small set of bleachers. Jeremy and I hadn't brought any chairs. We both sat next to Anna who was astonishingly the loudest member in the crowd. I designated myself as the poster holder as Anna yelled and cheered. She was really into the game. The referee had to ask her to calm down at one point. Jeremy found the whole thing quite amusing.

Effy stayed close to me. She never let my shirt go the entire game. She smiled a lot and at times acted like a mini version of Anna.

"Ewena! Eazy gonna score! He's gonna score! GOOOOAAAL!" Effy would say.

By the time the game was over the score was 3 to 1. Eazy did a hat trick, meaning he scored all three goals.

I carried Effy down the steps as Anna cheered and Jeremy laughed.

"Eazy, Eazy! He's our man if can't do it, no one can!" Anna cheered when we saw Eazy. His smile was still cute with two missing teeth. Damon, a few feet away from Eazy, was smiling as he saw us. He had on a blue jacket that matched the soccer uniforms and a blue hat that said 'assistant coach'.

"Damon!" Effy squealed reaching her arms toward him. So I made my way towards him and Damon happily took her into his arms.

"Where you a good girl?" Damon asked as he kissed her cheek. Effy nodded hugged her brother's neck.

Damon came around to kiss me on the forehead when he place Effy on his shoulders.

"Why you kiss Ewena?" Effy asked practically jumping on Damon's shoulders.

Damon smiled his special smile, "Because I like her."

"I like her, toooo. Does that mean I can kiss her?" she asked

I laughed and tugged Damon down to kiss Effy on the cheek.

"Yeah!" Effy yelled when I did. Anna had Eazy's trophy when she approached us holding Eazy with her other hand.

"First place!" Anna yelled holding it up

Eazy stepped behind her in embarrassment. I waved at him and he shyly waved back.

"You did really good Eazy." I commented and he turned away. He was a really shy kid.

Jeremy followed Anna everywhere. He still had a torch burning for her but at least he was on his best behavior when she was around. Having Damon there helped too.

Everyone gave Eazy high-fives as we made our way to the parking lot. Damon's car was closer so we quickly separated from the group after Damon handed Jeremy Effy's car seat.

…

The suspense was making me crazy. We had been driving for thirty minutes and still Damon hadn't given up our location. When we finally stopped, it was near the foresty part of town.

He came around to open my door and I was hesitant to get out.

"Your still not gonna tell me?" I asked as I got out

"Nope" he replied

I kissed him sweetly on the lips, "How about now?"

He smiled but still shook his head.

"Well this isn't some elaborate plan to get rid me is it? We're next to the forest. With lion and tigers maybe even bears."

Damon laughed, "No Elena I'm not planning to dispose of your body and there's only wolves in these forests."

"Ha," I laughed dryly, "Only wolves?"

Damon laughed harder and touched my hand. I gently grabbed his hand his response. I gulped, there's wasn't much light around as we entered the forest. The moonlight was the only thing shining through.

"Okay, you look scared… so I think I'm going to have to ruin the surprise." He said after five minutes of walking.

I nodded desperately, jumping at every sound the forest made.

"Well at least let me tell you the long way. There's a story behind it."

"Okay," I answered snuggling closer. I brought his jacket along with me and debated about putting it on yet.

"Well when I was eleven my father went through phase where he was teaching me about how to 'court' a lady." Damon said putting air quotes around the word court.

"Did he tell you to bring them to scary forests?" I asked

Damon shook his head, "No, but he told me that if l liked girl then I should take her to a dinner and a movie."

"That's sounds nice."

Damon shook his head again, "But then he said if I cared about a girl then I should take her to my place."

"He told you this when you were eleven?" I asked stunned. Eleven years shouldn't be thinking about those kinda things. Eww gross!

Damon laughed so hard that it was booming, "No... o my god no… that's not what he meant at all. He meant … like 'my place'… that place you go when you're sad or frustrated or happy or thoughtful. That place you don't share with anyone else."

I looked at Damon with a new found feeling. I suddenly smiled at the idea of seeing his place.

"I get it. I mean I have one too but its back at Northridge."

"What's it like?"

"Well I kinda share the place with my best friend Matty. We found it one day. It's kinda a cliff and when either of us is sad or had a bad day we go there. We scream at the top of our lungs to make the rest of the world melt way and then in the end we close our eyes and make a wish."

Damon smiled, "That sounds cool. And this Matty, is he gay or something?"

I looked at him questionably. "No what gave you that idea?"

Damon shook his head, "I was just hoping."

I smiled, "No Matty and I have just been friends for a long time. We do everything together."

Damon looked at me as we finally reached an open field. "Well I still need to explain a little more because the place I want to show you has a lot to do with my mom."

I nodded for him to continue. I was glad he was not a raging jealous person when I mentioned Matty. Some of my past boyfriends weren't too keen on having a boy best friend.

We reached a broken fence and he hopped it before he helped me climb over it. I put his jacket on, since the air started to get chilly. He wrapped his arm around me as we walked closer to his secret place.


	13. Girl meets Damon

**Starting where I left off… (to be clear my last comment was supposed to mean that the story isn't over now that they're together. Nothing else was implied by it.)**

* * *

A dark shape started to take form as we walked farther away from the fence. It looked like a building about a half a mile down. I held on tight to Damon as we approached it and he continued to tell his long story.

"My mother came to Mystic Falls when she turned eighteen. Her parents, my grandparents, had been divorced for quite a long time so they lived separately. She had lived with her mother in Los Angeles for as long as she could remember. Her father lived on farm on the outskirts of Mystic Falls. So the day she graduated from high school she packed her bags and visited her father for the first time in a long time. She had planned on staying here for a couple weeks but a couple of weeks turned into a couple months then years because she fell in love with the place and my father. However there was one spot in particular that was her favorite."

The dark building came up from the shadows just then, it seemed to be a barn.

"It was her father's barn," Damon said pointing at the large building, "She loved the place, and loved the animals. She once told me that there was no purer soul than a soul of a horse. One day she took me here when she had had a fight with my dad. I was six, maybe seven, she told me that this was her place. This was her heaven. By then, the farm was no longer a farm, all the animals were gone but still she loved this place. Then when she passed away it became my place."

When we arrived at the double doors Damon opened them for me. There was white Christmas lights hanging from the ceiling and some bright lamps strategically placed across the barn. Some hay was spread on the floor but it was scarce. The place looked old but sturdy. Most of wood was dark but some flowers were spread throughout the first and second floors. Some parts of the barn were also lined with bricks. Then in middle was a small wooden table with a white linen and two chairs next to it. The place looked so peaceful and quaint. The decorations didn't crowd the enormous room. Everything looked magical, and lovely.

Damon took my stunned silence to heart, "It looks better in the sunlight but we have school and stuff so I couldn't take you then."

I turned my face slowly to face him. I could feel a smile forming on my lips, "It's amazing Damon. Lovely, when did you have time to do all this?"

Damon smiled, "Um… right before the game. Anna helped and some of her friends from band."

I stepped out of his arms to explore the place. I could imagine the horses and the cows sleeping here. Now the stalls were empty and desolate. When I finished exploring the place I looked at Damon who had quietly taken his seat on the table in the middle.

"So this is your place." I said as a matter of fact.

Damon nodded his head and then looked at the ceiling to take in the majesty of the place.

"What do you when you get here?" I asked curiously.

Damon smiled and opened his arms to invite me on his lap. I took the offer happily.

"I don't do anything particular. Sometimes I read, other times I just stare at the ceiling, I've actually just fallen asleep here a couple of times."

"Are you going to read to me?" I asked softly. He kissed me on the neck and wrapped his arms around my waist.

"If you want me to but I have some dinner if you're hungry."

I slowly lifted myself from his lap and sat next on the seat beside him.

"What do have Chef Damon?" I teased

Damon smiled and pulled a basket from underneath the table. Then my cell phone rang, I should have put it on silent I told myself.

I quickly looked at the caller id, it was Anna.

"Who is it?" Damon asked when I pondered on picking it up or not.

"Anna" I answered

Damon's eyes went wide as he searched his pockets for something. "Shit I left my phone in the car. Pick it up please. It might be important."

I pressed the green button and put the phone to my ear.

"Hello?" I answered

I could hear some plates crashing and some loud banging from the other side of the phone. _Elena, I'm so sorry. Pass the phone to my brother please. _Anna begged.

I quickly handed the phone to Damon. In a moment's notice Damon got up with the phone still in his ear. He was talking at lightning speed, telling Anna he'd be there soon. He grabbed my hand quickly and we ran out of the barn.

…

Damon must have broken every law possible to get to his house. He left the keys in the ignition as he parked and ran out the car door. I quickly turned off the car and followed him inside. His apartment was on the third floor and we both ran up the stairs.

Apartment 33 had the door open. I could hear yells and screams coming from the apartment. Damon quickly entered the apartment and I followed. A police officer with short blonde hair was inside. A middle aged man with dark brown hair and green eyes was in the kitchen. He seemed to be the source of yelling.

The police officer tried to approach him carefully. She looked at Damon relieved.

"Where are the kids?" were the first words out of Damon's mouth

"In your bedroom" the woman answered

"GIVE ME MY KIDS! WHAT DID YOU DO TO THEM! WHY AREN'T THEY HERE!" the green eyed man yelled and threw another plate on the pile on the floor.

"Mr. Salvatore calm yourself," the police officer told the man sternly

The man shook in anger and pain. "WHERE'S MY WIFE! WHERE IS AMY! WHERE IS SHE! WHERE DID YOU TAKE HER!" the man said as tears spilled out of his puffy red eyes. I gulped, it was getting painful to watch. The man couldn't catch his breath; I could see his knees shaking as if he was on the brink of collapsing.

"Dad, calm down!" Damon half yelled

"NO! YOU DON'T TELL ME WHAT TO DO!" The man yelled as he grabbed a picture frame of a beautiful woman from the wall and threw it in the broken pile. The man regretted it as soon he did it. He hadn't noticed the picture inside until he had broken it. More tears started to fall as he looked at the picture. His face was red and muddled as he whimpered.

"No! I'm sorry Amy. I didn't mean to." the man whispered and suddenly his shaking knees gave out. He dropped to the floor catching himself with his hands. The broken glass cut his hands as he roughly grabbed the broken pieces of glass from the floor. He was in a hurry to pick them all up. I could hear his loud whispers as he hurried. "I'm sorry Amy," he whispered to the picture frame on the floor, "I love you. Come back to me. Come back! I need you. Don't leave me, please don't."

The sheriff approached the man in the calmer state but he yelled louder when she tried. "STAY AWAY! LEAVE ME ALONE!"

The sheriff backed off a smidge with her hands up in surrender. The man started to piece the broken pieces of glass back together. He didn't notice that he held the broken pieces so tight that he began to bleed even more. He seemed so numb to it all, the pain, his surroundings. He wasn't aware of anything. Every sound made him jump, every movement made him yell. He looked like he was trying to protect himself in his crouch, like if everything around him was foreign and he needed to protect himself and the picture frame.

A crowd began to form outside the door. All of them were whispering to each other. They couldn't take their eyes off the scene. Damon turned to look at them in pure hatred. He quickly slammed the door shut so that no one could see the man's break down.

I didn't know what to do or how to react so I stood completely still.

"Don't worry Amy, I'll take care of you. I love you; I love you so, so much. Maybe even too much." The mad said with a misplaced smile on his face as he pieced back the picture frame. His dripping blood had stained the pieces of glasses and broken plates. His smile was unaffected by the presence of blood.

Damon's face was set on an emotion I had never seen him wear, sadness. "Dad" Damon whispered

The smiling man on the floor with tears dripping down his cheeks and blood stained hands did not respond. He didn't recognize the name, Dad.

"Dad!" Damon said louder with still no response

"DAD!" Damon yelled louder with still no response

"DAMON!" Damon finally yelled and the man looked up from the floor in shock. He held on tighter to the picture as if Damon wanted to steal it away from him.

"Damon, she's dead. Mom is dead. Amy is dead. You can't bring her back life." Damon said on brink of crying

"No, I love her. She didn't die. You're lying! You can't have her!" the man said almost convulsing. Damon got closer to the man and crouched down to face him but not to touch him. The man crawled himself back into a corner, his body was shaking in what seemed to be fear.

"No Damon. She's dead but you're kids are in other room and they're probably really scared right now. So you have to stop this." Damon whispered to the man.

The man started to ball, he threw the picture back on the ground then placed his hands over his face. He stuttered as he said, "I d-d-d-didn't mean t-t-to scare them. I just missed her so much. I want her back. I need her back. Without her I can't breathe! I can't breathe! Help me breathe! Take the pain away! Take it away!"

Damon took the man into his arms as the man finally broke from his episode. Damon hugged the man tightly as if he was literally trying to do what the man had asked and 'take the pain away'.

"I should take him Damon. He's not fit to spend the night here." The sheriff told him

Damon nodded his head and carried the man up in his arms. The sheriff opened the door and the crowd of people still surrounded the place.

"There's nothing to see here people. Move out of the way. Go back home." The sheriff said and shooed the people away. She seemed disgusted by their lack of propriety or just plain decency.

I looked at surroundings as Damon left with his father cradled in his arms. The place was a wreck. Glass and ceramic was broken everywhere. Pillows from the sofa were spread across the floor. It was like the Tasmanian devil had just passed through.

Anna came out a second later with Effy wrapped tightly in her arms and Eazy holding her hand.

"Are they okay?" were the first things out of my mouth as I looked at the shaken kids.

Effy turned to look at me. Her eyes were swollen from tears and they continued to come down. Eazy looked like Effy but he wiped the fresh tears from his cheeks as if he refused to cry any more.

"Yeah they're fine. As soon as he started to yell I locked us in Damon's room. The banging on the door gave them the biggest scare."

"And you? Are you okay?" Anna looked shaken but it didn't look like she had been crying.

Anna simply nodded and Damon came into the door a second later. Eazy ran out of Anna's hand and into his brother's arms. Eazy began to cry again, as if having Damon there gave him permission to stop being so brave.

"It's okay Eazy. He's gone. He's gonna get better." Damon said soothing Eazy by stroking him on the back.

Damon looked at Anna and they seemed to be having a nonverbal conversation.

"I'm gonna put Effy to bed," were the next words out of Anna's mouth. The conversation they wanted to have would be saved for later when I wasn't there.

I looked for something to do and saw the broom and the dustpan by the door. Damon saw my intentions and shook his head.

"I've got the mess. Can you put Eazy to bed?" he asked void of any emotion. I nodded my head and Eazy easily let go of Damon and grabbed onto me.

He was a bit on the heavy side but I could manage. For this moment in time, I had to manage for these kids.

…

Eazy changed into pajamas quickly in the bathroom. I stood there quietly as he brushed his teeth carefully. When he was finally ready to fall asleep, I helped him into the covers.

"Would you like me to read you a story?" I whispered when I saw the collection next to his bedside. He shook his head.

"Do you need me to bring you anything?" I whispered

He shook his head. So I got off the bed to turn off the lights but then he yelled, "No!"

"O sorry are you afraid of the dark?" I asked taking my hand off the switch.

He nodded so I left the lights on. I was about to walk out the door when he whispered my name

"Yes?" I answered

"Don't take him away from us." He told me

"Who?" I asked.

"My brother, I don't have anyone else. I don't have a mom. I don't have a real dad. All I have is him." Eazy told me. I almost started to cry right on the spot but I stopped myself. I had to be strong for Eazy.

I gulped before I answered, "I'm not going to. I don't have a dad or mom either. I wouldn't dare take Damon from you."

Eazy nodded his head and closed his eyes to fall asleep. The one tear that dropped I wiped away.

…

As I walked into the kitchen, I heard someone groan and curse quietly. Damon was on the kitchen floor picking up big broken pieces of plates.

He looked up at me and stared at me hopelessly for a long time. He was the one who broke the silence.

"Go home Elena. We can talk tomorrow."

I crouched down to his level and started picking up some pieces. He gently grabbed the pieces from my hands and shook his head. "It's my mess not yours. Go home."

"Damon… let me help you."

"No"

I looked at his guilty face as if he blamed himself for it all. "Damon it wasn't your fault."

Damon turned from looking at me momentarily before he answered, "You see it's kinda funny that you're telling me this right now because you think I didn't know this would happen."

"How could you know?" I asked. From the looks of it his father seemed unpredictable.

Damon pointed at the calendar on his refrigerator. Today's date was circled three times.

"It's my parent's anniversary today and like clockwork my father freaked out. If anything today was day he was predictable," Damon said as he got up and grabbed the broom and dust pan, "Every year, every time. He's like a broken record repeating himself over and over."

I got up as Damon began to sweep the smaller pieces of the ceramic and glass on the floor.

"I should have been prepared but this morning I didn't bother to look at the calendar. I didn't remember about the date. I forgot because … I busy planning our…date"

I tried to interrupt but he didn't let me. "And don't tell me I didn't have to make the date and don't blame yourself because this is my fault. I wanted to be different. I thought I could be different. I wanted to be the good kind of boyfriend. The kind that could take you out on dates and make time for you. I wanted to be the kind of boyfriend you wanted to stay with. The kind that remembers to text his girlfriend and hang out with his girlfriend."

"Damon.."

"Don't say anything" Damon begged

"Damon we don't have to be those kinds of couples. We don't have to go on dates, we can just hang out when you have time."

Damon shook his head, "But… I don't want to do that. You don't deserve that. You should be with someone like Stefan who has time to be with you and money to buy you nice things."

"But I don't want to be Stefan. I want to be with you." I said as I grabbed his hands. He quickly pulled away.

"How can you say that? After what you just saw! This is my life Elena. You shouldn't want it! You should be running from something like this."

"But I'm not Damon. I'm here and I want to be here."

"Well I don't want you here!"

I stood my ground not daring to look anywhere else but his eyes. Anna came in rushing.

"You guys! The kids are sleeping, we seriously can't have this conversation in the morning!" Anna quietly yelled

Damon stared at me ferociously, "Elena was just leaving. Did you call Jeremy like I asked you?" Damon asked his sister.

She nodded her head, "He'll be here soon."

I looked at Damon's frustrated face and decided anything I said after this point would only be used against me. So I walked out of the kitchen. Took his jacket off in the living room and quickly left the apartment.

My phone buzzed a second later. It was Jeremy, he was outside.


	14. Boy meets Matty

**Starting where I left off…..**

I got into the car with Jeremy without another word. The car shook as I slammed the car door shut. My emotions were creeping up on me. I need to get far away. Now, right now!

"Drive!" I yelled. Jeremy popped into life; he quickly drove away from the sidewalk. God! I couldn't breathe. I needed to breathe and I couldn't do it to save my life. I slammed on the dashboard hard with my fists.

Jeremy looked at me like I'd just gone crazy.

"Elena what's wrong?" He yelled

I could feel my breaths shortening and increasing. My head was spinning, the world was crashing.

"St-stop the car! Jeremy stop the car!" I yelled. Everything needed to stop now, to get slower. The pace was too fast.

Jeremy obliged my wishes and quickly got off the road.

"Elena! Tell me what's wrong? Did Damon do something to you?" He asked full of worry.

I shook my head still trying to get a grip. I couldn't find any words. I couldn't speak.

"T-Time! I need time!" I half yelled out of breath

Jeremy gulped as he looked at me in horror. The panic was rising, my chest was heaving. A panic attack I was having a panic attack. The realization gave me relief.

I need to calm myself, I put my head between my legs and tried to control myself again. Jeremy turned off the car and waited patiently as I calmed myself.

…

Ugh, finally I thought as I lifted my head. I came back up to find a mad Jeremy.

"You're not fooling me Elena." Jeremy said with his arms folded across his chest.

"What are you talking about?" I asked holding onto my chest.

"You might be fooling Aunt Jenna, the school and everyone else but I know you Elena. You're not letting yourself feel."

"Just drive Jer." I told him almost annoyed at being found out.

"No! You can't carry the world on your shoulders, Elena! You're not strong enough. Our parents died Elena. You can't just ignore that. "

"I'm doing fine Jer. I'm dealing with it in my own way." I argued

"Yea by completely avoiding it! You can't do that!"

"And what if I am? What if I'm pulling my recovery date closer? That's not a bad thing Jeremy."

"Elena you just had a twenty minute panic attack! You can't be serious! If you keep pushing your emotions back the consequences will become worse. They're gonna come out sooner or later."

"I'm dealing Jer." I said with finality

"What happened tonight? What triggered the attack?" he said slightly changing the subject.

"Nothing happened," I answered stubbornly.

Jeremy stared me down.

"It was just a rough night," I answered while staring out the passenger window.

"Elena look I know you want to speed up your recovery and what not, but you have to slow down. I know you like Damon and he seems to like you but maybe you're rushing into this."

"I know my limits," I said crossing my own arms refusing to listen to him, the only other person who knew exactly what I was going through.

"Apparently not, you just had a panic attack," He countered again

It was my turn to stare at him back.

"Elena, I'm not saying to break up with the guy but like I said I know his backstory. Even if you weren't at this stage in your life, dating this guy looks like a challenge."

"I can handle it Jer."

"Not right now, you can't…."

"I can..."

"Elena listen, why don't you just give it some time? Give yourself some time. Give yourself another week or two. If it's meant to be, if you and Damon are meant to be then…. You guys are meant to be."

I stood looking at my baby brother. I was supposed to be the one taking care of him. He wasn't supposed to be the one taking care of me. I nodded my head and said "Let's go home Jer."

He turned on the car and we left the sidewalk. He got out his point of view, though I didn't want to hear it. I could handle this. I was stronger than this. Strong, I was strong. Strong was at the very least the mask I was wearing.

…

The next morning, I woke up early and stared at the ceiling for awhile. I thought long and hard about ditching school. Then I decided not to. I wasn't going to run from my problems. I would face Damon today….

Jeremy and I walked in silence as we made it to school. We were mad at each other or at least I thought I was. Before he let me go, he grabbed me and gave me a big hug. I let him and walked to my locker afterward. The bell rang before I could find anyone I knew.

…

By lunchtime, my entire day was lost in my thoughts of what I could take and what I couldn't. I honestly didn't know but I made myself face my fears as I walked towards the outside cafeteria.

However, I didn't make it pass the double doors to the outdoor cafeteria. Someone pulled me back.

"Elena!" Anna yelled as she grabbed my hand.

"Hey Anna, where's Damon?" I asked

"I don't know but… you shouldn't come outside today," she said with a peculiar grin.

"Why?"

"It's hot, like summer is never ending hot." Anna said fanning herself with other hand.

I shook my head with a smile. "That's okay, I like spending my time outside."

"But you're gonna get sweaty," she argued still not letting go of my hand. She even tugged me a bit.

"Anna it's fine. Please let go of my hand." I said sweetly

Anna looked at me with big sad eyes. "No you should stay here," she whispered burying her eyes into mine.

"Anna, I need to see Damon," I told her with only patience I had left.

I tugged gently to get my hand back and walked out the double doors. She followed me as I made my way to our usual table. I found Damon laying flat on the table looking up at the sky.

Anna raced to him. She tugged at him until I got there.

"Come on Damon. I need to show you something! Get up." She told him

"Anna, you're acting strange, you can show me whatever you need to show me later," Damon argued when I got there.

Anna got in front of me before I could get to him.

"Elena just stop, okay? Stay where you are!" Anna protested

I didn't take another step closer. She looked at me then Damon, then me again. She looked desperate.

"Both of you shouldn't talk today okay? Maybe tomorrow. Okay?" She told us with her arms stretched out horizontally to separate us when Damon got up.

Then I realized she was trying to keep us from breaking up. But avoiding the talk wouldn't do any good. She had to know that right? The cracks would still be there the next day.

"Anna, let me talk with your brother." I told her softly

"Okay, fine but do it tomorrow or the next day. Both of you aren't thinking straight right now. Just wait a little bit." She said still holding us from each other.

Damon gently grabbed Anna's hand and put it down. "Anna I need to talk to Elena."

"No, Damon. Just wait, give it some time." She said with big eyes. Damon walked around her to the corner of the lunch room. I followed. I turned to look back at Anna as she pushed the sides of her hair back in frustration.

…

I looked down refusing to look Damon in the eye. My courage had deflated as soon as I reached him.

He picked my chin up so that could look at him. He started to speak but I place my hand over his mouth.

"Hold on. Let me go first." I told him and he nodded in agreement.

"I don't want to break up." I said and he tried to interrupt but I clamped my hand over his mouth tighter.

"And I know you think we should but let me propose a limbo. A dead period." I said finding more courage. I let go of his mouth and he looked me pensively.

"A dead period?" he asked confused

"Yea a dead period. A period, a couple of weeks or so. We just put everything in pause. We just slow down. We won't actually be together but we won't actually not be together."

"Elena, I don't think…"

"Just… think about it. We can decide if we work in those two weeks. What are you afraid of?"

Damon looked at me and decided something again. "I'm afraid of falling too deep. I'm afraid of pulling you in with me."

"Then we'll swim in shallow waters," I proposed with half a smile.

He cracked a smile but quickly put it away. "I don't trust myself with you."

I laughed dryly, "Well that's funny because I can't trust myself either, at least not now."

He looked at me with a titled head as if he was trying to find his answer on my face."So …this limbo what are the limits?"

"We can't avoid each other. So we stay friends" I said quickly because that was my main concern, losing him.

He nodded his head. "Okay what else?"

"Umm… we can't … we can't kiss." I said a bit shyly.

Damon smiled at my reaction. "Okay. So what's the difference between friends and limbo?"

"I can hold your hand." I offered not knowing the real difference.

"Oooo scandalous." He said capturing my hands and kissing my right palm.

I took a deep breath before admitting some truth in my plan.

"Damon… I want to be truthful… I don't know what this will lead to. I'm not sure about anything…"

Damon nodded his head, "Are you scared?"

I nodded my head.

"Of what?" he asked still holding on to my hands as if not willing to let me go yet.

"Scared of what this might push me into." I whispered almost inaudibly

He released one of my hands to pull one of his free then cupped my cheek gently and I leaned into his warm hand.

"Okay, limbo," he whispered back, "I'll play and Elena…."

"Yes?" I said liking the feeling of his hand tracing my jaw.

"I'm your friend first and you're not fooling me."

I looked at him astonished, "What do you mean?" Had he been talking to my brother?

"I used to hide my feelings too. I used to hold them in until they burst but you shouldn't do that. I'm here. I can carry you if you need me to."

I nodded as I looked at him pensively.

I gulped before I answered him. "I don't how. I mean I can't seem to let my emotions out anymore. Sometimes I think… I think they're lost but then other times they just come rushing."

He nodded his head as if understanding my strange explanation. "Well I'm here. And the day you learn to let them out, I'll be here." He said putting his forehead on mine.

I gave him a small smile. "Thank you Damon but I'm good today. Today is a good day. I'm dealing."

Our foreheads stayed together for some time until I broke the silence.

"Damon?" I said after awhile

"Hm," he said lifting his forehead and opening his eyes.

"I know that you're strong and I know that you put the weight on your shoulders but if you need someone to lean on. I'm here for you, too. I'm here for Anna. I'm here for Effy and I'm here Eazy." I said to be absolutely clear.

"You don't have to," He whispered back. I wondered if he thought I was repaying him the favor but I honestly wasn't. Even if hadn't offered to help, I would have offered to help him as much I could.

I tried to frame my next words carefully so that he would understand me clearly.

"I don't but I'm your friend too. And I want to help you pick up the plates when they're broken and I want be there for you when you have to carry your dad in your arms because his legs can't hold him up anymore. I'm here for you."

"I don't want to pull you in," he responded

"You're not…," I said shaking my head, "I'm jumping in."

…

We walked back to Anna hand in hand. She smiled at us with her hands in the air, some happy tears escaping her tear ducts.

"Well then, I guess you did need to talk." She said looking at us with an emotion I could only define as hope.

…

The rest of the day passed fairly quickly. It was odd going back to our old study habits. We both laughed when he awkwardly tapped my back because he accidently came in for a kiss. This was good though. It was like a very early part of a relationship, where you weren't exactly sure if the person wanted to kiss you or not. So instead you hold hands and spend time getting to know each other.

Cheerleading practice was rough but I need to let out some extra frustration. Running helped me cool down. By the time I came home, I felt like screaming, "I am ELENA! And I am WOMAN!" but I didn't.

I told Jeremy about my new predicament and he nodded in agreement. He liked the idea of slowing down. Being friends with Damon and taking our time to realize if this is what we wanted was a good move.

Doing homework was a complete bore but I pushed through it and settled on my journal. Thinking about what I wanted. Thinking about my future and my goals. I fell asleep dreaming about writing the next great American novel. I hadn't thought about what I really wanted in a long time.

…

The next morning I woke up relaxed. After all the emotion of the last few days I breathed Friday with a sense of relief. Limbo was good I told myself. Slow paced.

I didn't tell Caroline or Bonnie about limbo. I figured it was something personal. If I explained even a part of it, I would have to reveal more than I was willing to. Either way Bonnie convinced me to spend lunchtime with her and the rest of the girls.

They were all excited about party at the Mikealson's Mansion on Saturday. I was invited somehow. I found it strange that everyone wanted to go even though they hated the Mikaelsons. Bonnie explained that their parties were legendary. The Mikaelsons had the money and the power to throw amazing parties. Power meaning that the local police wouldn't shut them down quickly.

I figured I'd give it a try and Caroline got super excited. Mikaelson's parties were something of an otherworldly nature.

…

Coming out of tutoring with Damon, we were both in good moods. We were doing well in limbo. He was going to give a ride home because I didn't have cheer practice today.

"So I had another question that has been bothering me about limbo," Damon said as my phone buzzed.

"Shoot" I encouraged and pulled out my phone.

_I've got a surprise _The text said from Matty. I texted him a sad face. He knew me long enough to know I hated surprises.

_LOL when do u get out of cheerleading practice?_

"Well it's nothing big or anything but I was wondering about other people," Damon continued.

"Of what other people might think?" I asked. I didn't Damon would care.

_I don't have practice today. Are u still coming 4 dinner? _ I texted back

_R u home? _Matty responded

"No I don't care about that. I meant are we allowed to see anybody while in limbo?" Damon inquired

I was stunned for a moment. I looked at my phone as a cover. _No at school. Y? _ I texted back

"Well, I guess. I mean… I don't think," I said stumbling through my words, thinking about Katherine.

Damon pushed the doors open to the parking lot of the school. There was the familiar truck, from my old high school days, in the parking lot. It was the old bulky blue truck that belonged best friend, Matty.

"Elena, I don't want to see other people. I just wanted to make that clear." Damon said before I took off running. I dropped my bag on the way. Matty was waiting outside his car texting intently.

"Matty!" I screamed and he looked up. He smiled quickly and opened his arms to catch me. He lifted him off the ground in a bear hug. I held on to him for dear life.

"Elena" he whispered

"I missed you!" I confessed

"I missed you too" he said stroking my hair not letting me go.

Damon came around seconds later with my bag. Matty put me down a second later and I wiped the happy tears from cheeks with my wrist as I let go.

"Matty, this is Damon," I said as I grabbed my backpack from Damon's hands.

Matty stuck his arm out measuring Damon like an overprotective big brother. Damon took Matty's hand firmly. The greeting was too formal in my opinion but both seemed to assessing each other at the same time.

"Damon, Matt is my best friend from back home." I added

"Yeah, I think you mention that once." Damon said as he let go of Matty's hand.

"I thought you might be at practice so I came here before I went to your house." Matt explained

"You didn't have football practice?" I questioned

Matt shrugged. "Eh, I had a game yesterday. It's no big deal. I haven't seen you in a long time and I wanted to surprise you."

I smiled in pure happiness.

Damon looked me suspiciously. "I was under the impression that Elena hated surprises," Damon stated

Matt smiled tightly. "She does but isn't that fun in surprising Elena," Matt confessed

"Hey!" I responded as I gently patted him on his bicep.

"Well I was about to take Elena home and I have to get to work." Damon said without taking his eyes off Matt.

Matt smiled wider in return. "Well, I can take her. It'd save you the trouble."

Damon bit his lower lip in what seemed to be annoyance.

"Don't worry. I'll take care of your girlfriend" Matt said with the same wide smile.

I was about to explain our limbo when Damon nodded, "Good, bring her home safely."

Damon kissed me on the forehead gently before taking off for his own car.

"So that's Mr. Blue eyes?" Matt joked when we got into his car

I smiled, "Yea that's Damon."

"No joke Elena. The guy wanted to chop head off right now." Matt said turning on his car.

I rolled my eyes. "Damon's not like that." I said as my phone buzzed.

_Surprise Bananas and pajamas _Anna texted me

_I've got plans today _I texted back quickly

_Well change them. Karaoke! _

I laughed as Matt pulled out of the parking lot. "What's so funny?"

"Um… my friend Anna wants to do karaoke today."

Matt laughed, "She doesn't know you belong in the funny section of _American idol._"

I stuck my tongue out. "Hey my singing isn't that bad. Either way, you mind if we go there instead?"

Matt smiled, "Sounds fun."

**Thanks for your patience. I was trying to finish my first story before I wrote another chapter. **


	15. Girl meets Boy

**This chapter was written from Damon's perspective …**

I breathed in deeply before I let myself out of the car. Then I brushed my hair back with my right hand. Anna once told me that I brushed my hair back when I got flustered. I guess she was right because my hands still feel restless after leaving the parking lot. I was hoping work would ease my mind as I stepped into the grill.

I really should be thanking that All American douche. I really had no right in offering Elena a ride back home. I was already on the brink of being fired. I had arrived late every day this week, good thing Trevor hadnt been around. I shouldn't even be tutoring Elena but it was impossible to stay away from her. The more time I spent with her, the happier I was.

I smiled and waved at Big Mike through the counter where the waiters grabbed their orders. Then I approached Liz.

"Hey Liz," I said giving her a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek. She grabbed my chin and nudged my face down so that she could see my eyes. She stared at me for a moment before saying anything.

"Hmm… you're upset what's wrong?" She asked all-knowingly. She had some six sense about these kinds of things. Big Mike repetitively commented on his inability to keep secrets from her, to which she regularly and teasingly replied, 'Now why would you want to keep secrets me?' Their banter was always playful, even though they spent an extraordinarily amount of time together. I used to think that I could never spend that much time with someone but then Elena came along…

"I'm fine," I said with a wink.

She shook her head like the motherly figure she was. "Ugh, Damon… you are a terrible liar."

I laughed and made my way into the kitchen. "Damon, my boy!" Big Mike greeted.

"Hey Big Mike, Is Trevor around?"

Big Mike shook his head then answered, "You know that son of a gun is lazy bum. He left around one. If his dad didn't own the place, he would have been fired already. Just sits on the stool all day trying to hit on anything with a skirt and criticizing the rest."

I laughed half-heartedly and grabbed a clean apron from the cabinet. "So what are your plans for the night?" I asked as I read some of the new orders. The question only made me think of Elena and that damn All American. Elena probably had plans with him. Ugh… I hate limbo. Could I text her about her plans for the night? Would that be weird?

Big Mike looked me strangely as I roughly tugged three orders from their clips on the wall

"You okay, Damon?" Big Mike asked

I smiled awkwardly, "Yeah I'm cool."

Big Mike shrugged it off and answered my previous question. "Well, me and the mrs. actually had no plans for the night so Liz called Anna and offered her a bananas and pajamas."

I sighed regretfully. I knew what Anna's answer was but I had to make sure, "She said yes, didn't she?"

Big Mike nodded and continued to flip some patties.

"Big Mike, you did us the favor last week. I love you guys for doing it but the kids are our responsibility." I answered and began taking out some things from the refrigerator.

"Damon… Anna is fifteen. Let her have some fun. Anyway, if Liz had it her way she would never want Eazy or Effy to leave our house. She loves them. Plus, she had a doc's appointment today." Big Mike answered assembling his last burger of the night.

"Any good news?" I asked as I began to chop up some vegetables.

Big Mike shook his head. "Nah… doc said she's not pregnant… he thinks she's going through menopause."

Big Mike held whatever emotion he had in, so I put down my chopping knife to console him. It didn't take long before he had a smile back on his face. Big Mike was always a good-natured person but I knew he wanted a family.

He tapped my back and headed over to counter since his burger was ready to serve. After he rang the bell on the counter he turned to me with a smile.

"So how's it going with Elena?" he asked if only to get that embarrassing smile that came after anybody brought her name into a conversation.

He laughed as the inevitable smile came out. I quickly busied my hands with the vegetables again and put a chicken breast to cook. "Um… nothing much." I answered hiding my face from him. Except that now we were in limbo and she wasn't exactly my girlfriend anymore. Ugh… I should have never said yes to limbo. It drove me insane. She was mine but she wasn't. I didn't just want a piece of her, I wanted all of her. I wanted her in class, at lunch, at tutoring, right now and… forever. I shouldn't say forever. Don't say forever. Stupid Damon. You're being stupid.

"Awww… she has you Damon. Admit it." Big Mike teased as he took off his apron.

I smiled uneasily.

"It's those big doe eyes. You probably just can't say no to her," Big Mike continued. Of course he was right. Elena could tell me to hop on one foot for an hour and I'd do it with a ridiculous grin on my face.

"See you tomorrow Big Mike." I said to help him out the door. I really did not want to have this conversation. Especially when I wasn't sure Elena and I could help our circumstances and get back together.

Big Mike laughed a booming laugh. "Ah, Damon I don't think I've ever seen you this nervous before but that's good it keeps you on your feet. You don't wanna lose her now that she's yours."

The pain in my chest made me flinch but Big Mike didn't see. He left with Liz soon after that and I was left to tend kitchen with Paul bartending.

…

After a while cooking takes a back seat in your mind. It's kind of like driving. You're doing it, you're aware but at the same time your mind is racing with thousands of thoughts. My thoughts jumbled through a whole mess of things as the dinner rush ended and things began to slow down.

My dad was missing… again. Sheriff Forbes released him on good will but hadn't seen him since Thursday morning. I didn't dwell too much on that fact. My dad had a tendency to disappear then reappear in a week or so. I didn't know what he did in that time period but he usually reeked when he came back. Not to mention the fact that he was starving when he found our place again.

Stefan once asked why I let him back in the house every time and why I didn't just try adopting them the day I turned 18? Stefan found me strange about ninety percent of the time but I had nothing against my cousin. I also found him strange ninety percent of the time. He did me the favor of babysitting from time to time. It cost him a few yells from his football coach so it bugged Stefan if I asked too often. I guess I felt less guilty about leaving them with a family member than with a friend.

Stefan and I just didn't see eye to eye anymore. When we were kids everyone said we were attached at the hip but we grew apart. We no longer had anything in common. He practically had the world at his feet and I was constantly running around, trying to keep my world from falling to pieces. I answered his question simply. I told him Damon Senior was my dad. I couldn't kick him out, he could no longer function in the world.

If I kicked Damon Senior out, I might as well sign his death sentence. Stefan never had a finesse for words. His words always came out wrong. You had to really know him to understand him and not be offended. So I didn't take it to heart when he answered, "Wouldn't it be better if he just died?"

I breathed in before answering him. I said no. I wasn't sure Stefan got the point of family so I took a logical approach with him. I answered, "First of all I needed Damon Senior alive. Even if I am eighteen, I'm not sure if the state would allow me to take the kids. I also think you need to be twenty one to adopt. Plus what if I actually don't make enough money to satisfy the state? What if they take Anna away since she's not actually blood related? I think I need to be older to adopt someone her age. Plus, they'd check up on me a lot, I don't need more people criticizing the way we live."

Stefan answered, "You don't think giving them up would be better? Maybe they could have a better life than you're offering."

I have to admit that statement stung me a lot. However, how I could ever let anyone of my siblings go? We were a family, a concept foreign to Stefan. I love them. I love them senselessly. Staying together was better than anything money could buy… right? I hoped I would never regret my decision. I tried hard… like super hard to give them everything they needed and wanted. I didn't want my selfishness (if that was even selfishness) of keeping us together to hinder any of them.

I know I put the most pressure on Anna. It kills me inside whenever I feel like I'm pushing her too hard. If we were running low on food Anna and I were the first ones to go hungry. That was the rule. Having to pay for Eazy's soccer registration brought us down one-hundred fifty dollars. Anna and I were currently scrapping until the end of the month when I got paid. Meaning we skimmed on a few things. We could always grab food here after school if Trevor wasn't around.

I wished Anna didn't have to make the sacrifice. I wish I could just carry all of us by myself. If I didn't have to go to school, I could probably manage our financial problem better but I needed at least a high school diploma. They didn't give high paying jobs for high school drop outs. One day I will be able carry us without asking for help.

_Buzz, buzz. _

My phone took me out of my train of thought.

_Hey damon… don't be mad. I took an offer of bananas and pajamas. _Anna texted

I shook my head and put out the last order. I took a seat in the corner after being on my feet for four hours straight. I told Paul I'd take my break and he nodded since the place was clearing out.

_It's fine I'm not mad. What r u doing anyway? _ I asked

_I went to the karaoke bar across town with Will, Elena, Jeremy, and Matty. He's Elena best friend. He's a real nice guy._

I rolled my eyes. Great… Why couldn't this guy be a total douche or something? He had to be Mr. All American. I took comfort in the fact that Anna always tried to find the good in every one. She wasn't one to bad mouth people but she did speak her mind.

_That's cool. R u having fun? _I texted. Anna wasn't a serial texter. She only texted when she needed to tell you something. Texts of boredom or randomness weren't in her nature.

_Umm… kinda. I just… it's no big deal or anything so don't go all psycho. Promise?_

I thought about it for a second. _Fine I promise_ I answered since she wouldn't tell me otherwise. She could be as stubborn as me.

_Well you know how I love karaoke, right?_ She answered. I smiled. Anna had an amazing voice, the kind that sent chills down your arms.

_Yea_

_Well I started with some of my faves Firework by Katy Perry and of course Whitney Houston's I have nothing. Lol Fyi your girlfriend can't sing but everyone still clapped when she sang Carly Jae Jepsen's Call Me Maybe. _

I laughed. Ah… Elena. Who wouldn't clap for her? I hadn't told Anna about limbo yet. I had to tell her soon. The next text came in before I could reply.

_Two guys actually gave her their number! Can u believe it? But don't worry Matt shooed both of them off. He's got ur back!_

Now I really couldn't hate this All American. I wish I could have been there.

_Well I'll have to thank him. So what happen? You sang and …_

_Well then I sang some of other faves, Like Flyleaf's All Around Me. They weren't the usual pop fluffy songs everyone was singing. So when Elena, Matt and Jeremy left, I got in the car with Will. He asked me why I sang such weird songs._

I could feel my anger start to rise.

_I told them they weren't weird. We got into an argument. Then he asked when my goth phase would pass. And then he told me I look better without all the got lame goth makeup. I told him to shove it up his…_

So many things I wanted to write back. Picturing my hands around Will's neck slowed me from writing them.

_So I got out of the car and now I'm stranded across town. Sorry_

She had nothing to be sorry for! The Will guy was a dick for saying such things. I knew some people didn't like or approve of Anna's style. But seriously she wasn't harming anyone, she just liked to dress a certain way. I wouldn't care if Anna decided to wear a clown suit to school every day. I didn't think Will would care either but apparently he liked Anna for what she could be not for who she was.

_No need to be sorry. Guy is a dick. I don't get off work until one in the morning. Give me a second to find you a ride._

_K thanks. FYI Big mike and Liz are at the movies and Stefan is at a bonfire. Is there anyone else we can ask. I didn't want to bug them._

I sighed as I scrolled down my list of contacts. I smiled as I passed through Elena. Ugh… I wanted to call her. Not really for the favor. I just wanted to hear her voice. Her sweet and apparently tone deaf voice. I continued to scroll down before I thought about what she told me yesterday. She wanted to help. I scrolled back up. She offered… and I wanted to hear her voice. My finger pressed the button before my head decided anything. No use fighting it now, the phone was ringing.

_Ring…Ring… Ri_

"Hello?" asked a male voice. Fuck, it was the All American. I could hear Elena giggling in the background.

"Hey umm… it's Damon. Can you pass the phone to Elena?"

"Uh… sure" he answered before the shuffling sounds ensued. _Elena it's your boyfriend… Mr. Blue eyes? _I heard him tease her. I smiled widely. Mr. Blue eyes… not a bad nickname. It wasn't a McDreamy or a McSteamy but it had a certain quality to it. Grey's Anatomy references were all Anna's fault.

_Shh… Matty he can hear you _I heard her respond. I could picture her exact expression by just hearing her voice. The nickname made her feel embarrassed.

"Hey Damon!" she answered excitedly.

"Hey Elena… how was your night?" I asked before I troubled her with the favor.

"It was good…_Laugh… _Matt stop it I'm talking… Sorry Matt just being pest," She answered before her voice became muffled but I could still hear her. _Matt that tickles, off the bed… go bug Jeremy for a bit_ She told him. What the hell were they doing on a bed? Was it her bed! I hadn't even seen her room yet! And this all American was just casually in her room, apparently alone with her, and on her bed. Ugh… why couldn't she have a gay best friend or someone with missing teeth, a balding head, and pregnant belly? Was that too much to ask for?

"Your sister has an incredible voice." She added and I snapped back from my thoughts.

"Yea she does but umm… she got in a fight with Will. He left her at the Karaoke bar."

"What! O my god… I'm sorry Damon. I swear I didn't know, I'll get her right now. Text her I'll be there in twenty minutes."

I smiled. I didn't have to awkwardly ask for her help. Elena just naturally offered it. I didn't have to explain my situation and I didn't even feel guilty for asking. Elena, my god, seriously… you were too good, too kind and only half mine.

"Thanks Elena." I answered

"No prob, call you later." She replied and hung up.

…

I didn't really get a call from Elena. Anna called and I could hear Elena in the background. Anna was safe and heading home within those twenty minutes.

By the time I got off work I was wiped out. I just wanted to pass out on my bed when I got home. I parked my car like a zombie then headed up the stairs one by one. My legs felt like a million pounds as I made it up to the apartment.

Before I could open the door I could hear some voices. Anna wasn't asleep?

I could hear a familiar voice as I put my key in the lock. "Anna you should never settle for relationship with a guy that won't allow you to be yourself" I heard Elena say as I stopped myself from turning the lock.

"But he was so sweet and what if… what if it was just me? What if I was the problem? They call me queen of dead you know? The kids at school." Anna said in a tearful voice.

"Anna there is nothing wrong with you. You're smart and pretty. Will was stupid to let you go. If he can't see what I see then he's a blind because I see an amazing girl. One day you'll find a guy who doesn't care about how you dress or your taste in music. He'll love you for exactly who you are."

"Don't say anything you don't mean Elena. It's not nice." Anna argued.

Elena laughed. "Anna I'm not lying. Any guy who got to know you would fall madly… head over heels… truly and insanely in love with you," Elena said and then paused for a moment before laughing again, "They just have to get pass Damon first."

Anna laughed with her. I rolled my eyes then twisted the key to get in.

"Damon!" Anna yelled and hugged me. I could tell she had, had a rough day.

Elena smiled behind her. I hugged Anna tightly. I wiped away some of her tears away when she looked at me. She smiled when she turned to look at Elena and then said, "I'll leave you two alone, I'm gonna get ready for bed." Anna was unmistakably team Elena.

When we were alone Elena got her purse and walked up to me.

"You look tired," She said as stroked the bags under my right eye. I smiled and said, "Thank you, Elena."

She smiled back and brought my forehead down to hers. "You're welcome," she whispered.

We didn't say anything for awhile. I just liked the feeling of her here, in my home, next to me.

I lifted both my hands to touch her face. My hands felt like they were touching the most precious thing the world and they didn't know what to do with it. She leaned in closer like she wanted to kiss me, I was more than happy to oblige but then she quickly glide her cheek on my cheek instead. Limbo… right. No kissing. She nuzzled into my neck and I let go of her face. She slowly wrapped her arms around me. I closed my eyes. God… I missed her. The feel of her, the smell of her shampoo when I hugged her, her sweet voice, I missed all of her.

She was the one that pulled away. I grabbed on to her hand when she did. We could hold hands she said. That was allowed. I didn't want to let her go. I kissed the palm of her hand, like I always did. My father used to do that to my mother a lot. My mother said it made her feel adored and I adored Elena. I saved that kiss for her only. Elena didn't seem to mine. She often smiled when I did it.

"Goodnight, Damon. I should get home. I just didn't think Anna should be alone," She whispered

I nodded my head and let go of her hand. "Good night Elena."

**My profile page has more of an explanation on the reasons behind the change in perspective. I'm trying to keep author's notes to a minimum and reserve the babbling to my profile page. **


	16. Boy meets party

**Damon's perspective…**

I woke up minutes before my alarm went off. I rubbed by eyes as I got up then looked over to Eazy's empty bed as I stretched. His bed sheets were blue with pictures of footballs, baseballs and basketballs. We were at Target one day buying some necessities when he saw it and immediately fell in love with it. I didn't want to buy it but I couldn't stand seeing Eazy's sad face. His pleas were heartbreaking. "Pretty please Damon. I won't ask for anything else. I promise."

I remember thinking that the silly thing was overpriced but I gave in sooner than I should have.

"Okay we'll buy it but only that," I said and he immediately had a smile on his face.

I smiled in response to the memory. I felt like I hadn't seen my sister and brother in a while but they'd be back soon. However, I wouldn't be here the moment they came back since I was working for my uncle Giuseppe again. He needed extra hands to help rebuild the Old Wickery Bridge. I sighed as I got ready for another day at work.

The shower felt good. I kept it warm and just stood under the water for awhile, thinking about last night. First thinking about Will and how I was gonna kick the crap out of him. Then I thought of Elena and all of my angry thoughts flew away. I thought about the first time I saw her. She was walking down the hallway with her head down and a pink binder.

I remember thinking she was beautiful. Her body language made me think she wasn't even aware of how beautiful she was. Then the incident with her brother passed. I was sure any chance with her was shot to hell after that. I shrugged it off convincing myself I couldn't care less. Then I heard her stomach growl in math class. When she told me it was my fault, I felt like throwing myself off a building.

I would never wish her to be hungry on my account. She looked shocked when I pulled out the snickers bar. A wave of guilt washed through me as I saw her inhale it. When I rushed out of class to pick up Effy and Eazy, I couldn't stop thinking about her. When she was still on my mind at work, I knew she was trouble. I tried to keep my distance but one event after another pushed us closer together. However I was stubborn, I figured we could stay friends. It wouldn't be a problem. The first time I kissed her, I ran away as fast I could.

Running and denying it only lasted… what? … a few hours. The second time I kissed her my body responded with more want. Then she asked for more than friendship. I couldn't say no. I wanted it so badly.

I got out the shower before I was late. Thinking about Elena constantly sidetracked me. I had to watch myself. I got dressed quickly to make up for lost time. Then I left a note for Anna to remind her that I was at work and that Effy and Eazy were being dropped off at noon. I looked for my keys when I found a white smartphone tucked into the cushions. It was Elena's. Its battery had died. She must be looking for it, I smiled as I tucked it into my jeans. Now I had a legitimate excuse to visit her.

…

I pulled into the construction site on time. The contractor had me working with sawing guy. Time passed by quickly as the work kept me busy. My uncle Giuseppe came to observe the site around noon. He called me over at my lunch time.

I sat down with him on an empty table meant for the workers. I pulled out a soda to drink.

"Nephew, how have you been?" he asked. My uncle Giuseppe had on a very expensive suit complete an authoritative aura. He was a man that demanded attention and respect. He was also the type of man who had never done manual labor in his life. He could be very cold and harsh at times.

"Good, how's my Aunt?" I asked politely.

"She's fair. How's your family?" He asked in an uninterested tone so I kept it short.

"We're doing well," I answered.

"I see, well that's good. I actually heard you had a girlfriend? Laura? Something thing like that?" he said looking directly in my eyes.

I simply nodded. "Her name is Elena."

Giuseppe nodded his head. "I heard you stole her from my son?" he asked with a grim face.

"I don't think my love life is any of your concern," I answered bitterly. I had to be polite to my Uncle because he often offered me jobs. He also gave me a nice 'Christmas bonus' around the holidays. It helped me get gifts for my siblings. However, it was a pain in the ass when he tried to control me with this hanging over my head.

"Don't be so hot-headed Damon. You're just like your father. I'm simply going state the obvious, you're not fit to have a love life. You have other responsibilities than spending time with your so called girlfriend."

"I think I'm handling it well," I rebutted

"Well then I'd like to remind you that 'handling it' does not mean passing your responsibilities to other people."

"I handle all of my responsibilities," I said fumed.

"Really, I went to the theater with your Aunt last night. Effy and Eazy were there with that cook again. Is that handling it? Or were you too busy with your girlfriend?" Giuseppe bit back

I dared him to continue. "Well, if you're keeping tabs on me you should have done your research. I was working the entire night."

Giuseppe shook his head in disbelief.

"What is this about any way?" I asked beginning to feel irritated.

"It's about taking charge of your life Damon. It's about distractions. In addition to the fact that you hurt your cousin."

"She chose me Uncle. She went on one date with Stefan. I never meant to hurt him."

"You never mean to hurt anyone Damon. You just do what YOU deem right. The consequences of your actions never seem phase you."

"Like what?" I asked. In my opinion I overthought everything. It wasn't my fault that some things didn't turn out like I originally planned.

"Like the fact, that I had a long talk with Mr. Michaelson about your recent fights in school."

"They had it coming!" I said finally raising my voice.

He raised his voice back at me. "Not everything is fought with fists Damon. You know how much I had to convince him not to press charges! You're eighteen Damon! You're an adult. You could have been sent to jail for attacking the Michaelson brothers."

I breathed out not wanting to argue any further and get myself into more trouble. He spoke again after a moment of silence.

"How is my brother anyway?" he asked in a more civil tone.

I breathed out heavily. I was glad to be moving on to a different topic. "He's missing again."

"Did you report it?" he asked already accusing.

"Sheriff Forbes is aware."

He looked at me distrustfully before continuing the conversation. "I heard he had another episode."

God! Was this man having me stalked? Probably not… Mystics Falls just liked to keep tabs on me since my family was apparently the only thing worthy of news.

"He did," I responded stubbornly.

"You weren't there?" He said crossing his arms.

"I got there in time."

He shook his head disapprovingly before he wagged his finger at me. "We should have him locked up. The man is a threat to society."

I rolled my eyes. I was more than sick of this conversation. "Uncle, as much as I enjoy our conversations, I really must be getting back to work," I said full of disdain.

"I only hope that one day something sticks from our conversations," He said before he left.

…

A month after my mom died, my uncle came up to me. He offered to take Effy into his house. Only Effy. He didn't consider Eazy part of the Salvatore family since he was born out of wedlock. He once called him bastard. I refused to see him for months after that. He has never since called him that. Anna was even less of Salvatore.

I told him, I could take care of them all. Ever since then, he has pushed me to take full responsibility. In his opinion, since I made the commitment I had to own up to it completely. He calls me spirited, stubborn, careless but he knows better than to comment on any of my siblings.

When the work day ended around six, I pushed my uncle's conversation to the back of my mind and remembered that I had Elena's phone. I smiled when I parked in her driveway. I looked in the mirror and tried to fix my hair. I have wood dust all over me but I didn't want to go back home to take a shower.

Once I got home I would have to face my responsibilities. I wanted a moment for myself today. I rang the doorbell excited.

"Damon," Jenna answered with a smile

"Hello, Ms. Gilbert is Elena home?" I asked. I had been trying to keep and give a good impression. I didn't want Elena's guardian to dislike me. It would only make it harder for us.

She smiled wider. "I'm actually related to her mother not her father. Just call me Jenna."

"Okay, Jenna is Elena home?" I asked again

"Um, no she's at a friend's house. Coraline, Carolyn?" She said trying to remember the pronunciation.

"Caroline," I corrected. I slipped Elena's phone back into my back pocket.

"Yea that's it. If you really need to see her, she'll be there. She's lost her phone."

I smile one-sided. "Thank you Jenna."

….

Well that was a no. Caroline would let me ten feet near her house. After what I did to her, I'm pretty sure she's have me shot on her premises.

I headed back home glum. Hugs from my youngest siblings picked up my mood. They had an amazing time with Big Mike and Liz. I excused myself to head into the shower. When I came out of the shower, Anna was in my room. I already had on my pajamas.

"Hey, what's up? You wanna talk about last night?" I asked since Effy and Eazy were in the living room watching cartoons.

She shook her head. She looked furious. "Elena came over today." She said evenly.

I smiled at the name.

"She spent the entire day with us. She brought coffee for you and me in the morning. You didn't tell her you were working."

I nodded, "It never came up."

Anna continued. "We went to the park and had a long conversation while Eazy and Effy played."

I smiled. "Well that's good." I figured Elena was still helping Anna out with relationship advice. I greatly appreciated it since I didn't want talk to Anna about guys. In my opinion, no guy would ever me good enough for her.

She rolled her eyes. "When she dropped us off home, I cleaned the apartment. I vacuumed, washed clothes, changed the sheets, I even mopped the floor."

"Thanks I was …"

"Yea, those are the things you do on Saturday but I did them. Now you have no excuse, you're going to that Mikealson party. Elena is going tonight."

I shook my head. "I'm kinda…"

"Tired? Overwhelmed? In freakin' limbo! What the hell?" she said. Now I caught why she was mad. Elena must have told her about limbo. So Anna automatically assumed we were going to break up. If I ever did break up with Elena I was guessing Anna would be hurt too.

"I was gonna tell you. She shouldn't have…"

"It slipped out. She was talking about it like I already knew. She felt bad afterward. I insisted she tell me the details."

"What did she say?" I asked quickly.

"She said nothing because Elena is that kind of person. She doesn't gossip about other people… she's better than all those loser girls you date."

"Well… it really isn't any of your business." I said giving avoidance a try.

"Damon get over yourself! It's the same thing with you. You probably told her you couldn't balance family and her."

I turned around and lay on my bed. She walked over to me and continued her lecture.

"So I'm giving you the chance to fix it. Damon you like this girl. I know you do because I've never seen you like this. And for some god unknown reason Elena seems to like you and everything that comes with you. So don't mess this up!" Anna said before she stormed off.

I lay staring at the ceiling. I looked at the time, it was seven thirty. Everything was done. The house was clean. Even my bed was made. Anna really went all out.

Effy went to bed at eight and Eazy was down by nine. By ten thirty Anna was practically throwing me out of the house. I was arriving at eleven.

…

By the time I got there the party was in full swing. The music was loud enough to be deafening. Most of the house was poorly lit but I was guessing that was the point. My eyes were searching everywhere for Elena. I should have gotten here earlier when it was less full but I was stubborn. However, Anna would not take no for answer. Her argument, "Chores are done, Effy and Eazy are sleep. Don't be a total bum."

If Elena had her phone I could have called her or texted her but her dead phone was still in my back pocket. I didn't feel like talking to anyone but her. When I didn't find her quickly I went to grab a beer. A girl gave me a… provocative stare. I smiled awkwardly and walked out of the room. I decided to sit on the couch in the living room as I searched for Elena. She never came by but I saw her friend Bonnie talking with her brother so I approached them.

I didn't think they were my biggest fans when I saw their faces.

"Hey Jeremy, Bonnie," I said raising my beer to them.

"Hey Damon… I didn't think you would make it." Jeremy answered. Bonnie just gave me a nod of acknowledgment.

Someone came running past us a second later singing over the music. It was Klaus. He was beyond drunk, soon to be plastered. I shrugged and rejoined the conversation.

"Have either of you seen Elena?" I asked with a one sided smile

Jeremy shook his head. Bonnie replied, "Umm… she arrived with Caroline and I but I haven't seen her for the past hour."

"Any idea where she might be?" I asked

"Sorry no but she I know she hasn't left. She's sleeping over Caroline's tonight and Caroline is in the corner over there arguing with Tyler." Bonnie answered. I turned to look at the corner. Caroline slapped Tyler and walked away.

I said my goodbyes and began to explore more of the house. Within thirty minutes I had explored the entire first floor. I looked up the stairs suspiciously. I figured it was worth a try.

I smiled when I saw a girl with her back turned to me. She had Elena's long brown straight hair. She was coming out of the girl's bathroom. I half ran to her. I tapped her shoulder but when she spun around I quickly noticed I was mistaken.

The girl was Katherine. She had straightened her hair for the occasion.

"Sorry, I thought you were…"

"ELenaaa?" she said in annoyed way, "You weren't the first one to mistake me for her."

"Have you seen her?" I asked. I was desperate.

Katherine crossed her arms and rolled her eyes. "I never took you as the type of guy to be hung up on a girl."

I sighed. "Have you seen my girlfriend or not?"

She smiled mischievously. "Did you put those frogs in my locker?"

I breathed out annoyed. "Yes, you were mean to Elena," I answered as a matter-of-fact.

"Well consider what I did to her, revenge." Katherine replied raising one eyebrow.

"You better not have hurt her," I replied furiously

Katherine looked bored as I threatened her. "If I had known she was coming I would have plan something more elaborate, but considering the late notice I was only able to lock her in Elijah's room."

"Get her out of there now."

Katherine rolled her eyes again and took out a key to show me. "Follow me. She's been in there for over an hour."

Katherine had always been petty.

We travelled to the last room in the hall when she finally stopped.

"Hmm…" she said when she began to unlock the door.

"What is it?" I asked impatiently.

She smiled widely. "Do you hear that? Sounds like two people making love," Katherine staged whispered.

I rolled my eyes, but listened nonetheless. She was right. I could hear a woman moaning as a man panted. My eyes opened wider as Katherine turned the knob.

…

Nothing could describe the relief that washed through me when I saw a head of blonde hair instead of brunette.

"What the hell?" Caroline screamed

"Close the door, Kat!" Klaus yelled

Katherine smiled and took out her phone out to take a picture. The flash went off and she said, "Oooo Eljiah is gonna be pissed when I tell him… but not as mad as Tyler when I show him this."

"Give me that phone, Kat!" Caroline yelled

Katherine waved her phone in the air and I grabbed it. I threw it at the bed and Caroline grabbed it quickly.

"You owe me Barbie!" I yelled before I closed the door and pulled Kat out with me.

"Ugh… well I guess I forgot where I put Elena." Kat said before she began to walk again.

"What do you mean you forgot!" I yelled

"I was sure I put her in Elijah's room." She said with a shrug. I grabbed her key from her hands.

"Does this open all the bedrooms?"

"Yes, they were all SUPPOSED to be locked to discourage what we just saw. Return it to me by the end of the night. I don't wanna go on a wild goose chase with you but I certainly don't wanna see Elena in the morning." Kat said before she skipped away with a smile. She had new leverage on the head cheerleader. If she still had the proof she might be dancing. Kat and Caroline weren't very fond of each other.

She stopped before she headed down the stairs and turned to look at me. "And Damon, if things don't work out you know where to find me," she said with a wink.

I shook my head before opening and closing like ten more bedrooms. This mansion was huge! I didn't find Elena in either room. I was beginning to think the worse had happened.

…

I returned the keys to Katherine and I checked my phone. It was thirty minutes past midnight and still no sign of her. I came up to dressed Caroline in the living room.

"What do you want? Are you going to blackmail me? Tyler and I broke up before I got in bed with Klaus." She said spitefully.

"I'm just looking for Elena," I stated.

"I haven't seen her but I know she was hoping you would make it. It kinda sucks that her boyfriend can't make it to most of these events."

I glared at her. She was throwing our sad excuse for a relationship back at my face Plus she was comparing with my new relationship. She hated that I would never make time for her. Truthfully, I wouldn't have come to this party for Caroline. I was tired from work and now Elena had me worried sick. I was thinking the worst things possible had happened to her.

"I really don't think you should be giving any relationship advice. You just hoped into bed with Klaus the night Tyler dumped you."

She crossed her arms in defiance. "You don't first know thing about me and Klaus or Tyler."

"I really don't want to hear about your high school melodrama. Do you know where Elena is or not?" I asked again.

"I don't but I'll make sure to mention how insensitive you still are when I see her," she spat back. I shrugged. Caroline would hate me until the day I died. There was no sense in trying to repair any type of relationship with her.

She walked away mad.

Katherine came up behind me a second later. "Well aren't you a lady's man," She said full of sarcasm.

"What do you want Kat?" I asked

"Nothing, you just look like lost puppy without Elena by your side. It's funny to see you squirm"

"Any clue where she might be?"

"Have you checked outside?" She asked in boredom.

I shook my head and she continued, "Well go check. And fyi it's sprinkling outside."

…

I went to search the premise. There were only cars and few people at the back of the house. Most people were either taking off since it was close to one in the morning or going back inside since it was beginning to rain. I took off my leather jacket to hover over my head as I searched for Elena. It began to pour a second later.

After a few minutes I finally saw her from a distance. I don't know what I expected when I found her but it certainly wasn't this. She was being carried by Elijah in his arms. She had her arms wrapped around him tight as they ran through the rain. They were both soaked through and through but both seemed to laughing like if someone had just said the funniest thing the world.

I had no idea what had been going on between the two but I didn't want to stick around to find out. I quickly snuck back into the house through the back door. Once inside, I found Jeremy fast.

"Here," I said forcefully handing him Elena's phone.

Jeremy smiled, "Hey, she's been looking for this."

I didn't bother with pleasantries as I took off for the front door. I just spent two hours look for my "girlfriend", only to find her wrapped in the arms of Elijah freakin' Mikaelson. For two hours I was thinking something terrible had happened to her, and contemplating about calling Sheriff Forbes. I was feeling sick from worry! Apparently, she had just been with another guy, a rich, good-looking guy who had more than enough time to spare for a girlfriend. Now I just wanted to get home, fast.

**I guess the downside about only hearing Damon's perspective is not knowing what's going on with Elena. Anyway I hoped you liked the chapter. Sorry for the late posting. I hope to get the next chapter up very soon.**


	17. Girls meets Elijah

**Chapter 17 was originally from Damon's perspective only but after the response to the last chapter I just had to include Elena's perspective. The first part of the story is in Damon's perspective then I return back to Saturday morning with Elena's perspective. Nobody's perfect and in my opinion, one of Damon's biggest faults is constantly reacting poorly to signs of rejection. **

* * *

**Damon's POV….**

I spent the better half of Sunday sulking. The highlight of my day was being invited to Effy's tea party. Pathetic I know.

By Monday morning, my mood still hadn't picked up. Anna encouraged me to get out of "my mood" but I couldn't help it. Anna couldn't figure me out and begged to me to be in the loop. I told her I was just tired. This was true but I was misleading her purposefully.

My mood dropped lower when I saw Elijah standing next to Elena's locker holding her books. I quickly turned down a different hall. I should have listened to myself this morning and stayed home.

…

My history class was right before lunch. I was eager to get out of class but Alaric stopped me before I could. He probably had another lecture for me about my future. My future was set. Get a job, support my brother and sisters, end of story. I don't know why he couldn't understand that.

"Ric, I'm really not in the mood today." I told him when the last person left the class.

"Damon this is important. I think you really have to give this some thought. At least turn in a handful of applications and give yourself some options when graduation comes rolling around."

"Ric I appreciate the support, really I do, but today… I don't need your lecture," I argued. I was itching to get out of the room.

"There is no harm in applying. I spoke to four of your teachers that would love to give you a recommendation letter. Plus you know you have mine."

"Again Ric, not today," I said about to step out of class.

"What about Elena?" he asked

I grew mad instantly. "What about her?" I asked angry he had brought her into this.

"This is her senior year Damon. You have like what… eight months before you graduate. She's not going to stick around. A lot of your friends are going to do amazing things when they graduate. Elena was talking to me about becoming a writer, maybe applying to NYU."

"Is that supposed to change my mind?" I asked disbelievingly

"No, of course not but it's supposed to get you thinking about your future and what you want from it."

"Well, let me tell you about me and Elena. We broke up!" I almost yelled

"After less than a week?" Alaric asked incredulously

"Yea, seems like Elena is already thinking about her future and it doesn't involve me." I said before I stormed off.

…

As soon as I stepped into the outside cafeteria, I saw Elena. She was beautiful and glorious smiling next to my sister. I turned back into the indoor cafeteria before she spotted me. I was too angry at her.

…

I contemplated not walking into our Math class as I reached the classroom's door. I almost walked away but Elena snuck up behind me with Elijah in tow. She was in crutches and he was helping her carry some books.

She smiled widely when she saw me. I gulped as I finally noticed the brace on her left leg. She turned to look at Elijah, "Thanks, I can take it from here."

Elijah smiled and said, "No problem, I'll you see soon." The hell he would!

He waved at me and gave Elena her books before he took off. I stood there frozen, unwilling to be agreeable.

"Hey Damon, I haven't seen you all day," Elena said fumbling to find a way to hold her books and still walk.

"Been busy," I said solemnly as she awkwardly reached for the door. I quickly grabbed the books from her hands and opened the door for her. Her eyes lit up and she smiled even wider.

"Thanks, doors have been my hell today. Good thing Elijah found me early this morning."

I frowned at his name. She didn't notice as she slowly made her way into class.

…

I wanted to rush out of class and wallow some more but I couldn't leave Elena. She wasn't accustomed to her sprain ankle or her crutches yet. I obligingly carried her books and helped her out of her desk.

She caught my mood fast and had a frown her face.

"I can carry my books, if you're in a rush," she told me with a fake smile.

"I'm not in a rush," I answered matter-of-factly.

She nodded and we walked silently to her locker.

"So what happened to your foot?" I asked when she opened her locker and placed her crutches on the floor. I stared at the crutches on the floor. This had been the reason I hadn't them this morning.

"Umm… I kinda slipped at the Mikaelson's party," She answered, "Anna said you were there. I didn't see you."

I wondered if she would have been so buddy-buddy with Elijah if she had seen me.

"I was there. I saw you," I told her.

She looked at me in surprise. "Why didn't you hi?"

My short fuse lit up when she asked the question. "Hmm… may be because you had your hands all over EliJAH."

She looked at me confused. "What are you talking about?" she asked before something clicked in her head and she answered, "I sprained by ankle… he was just helping me in inside,"

I ignored that fact and skipped to the next topic. "I was there for two hours looking for you! What were you doing with Elijah anyway?" I asked holding back some of anger. None of her words were registering correctly.

Her mouth gaped as she took in my heightened mood. "Are you mad at me?"

I looked away from her and her eyes. They would soften my mood and I was more than content with my current mood. "What were you doing with Elijah?" I pushed again.

I could hear her voice strengthen as she noticed my lack of sympathy. "Long story short. Katherine locked me in his room. If you don't believe me ask her since you don't trust me."

I skipped her comment and continued the story for her. "And what he came in all knight in shining armor and you decided hey why don't I jump him?"

"What are you talking about Damon? Elijah took me outside after being locked in that room for an hour. There was a train station about a block away. It's the place he likes to think and he was showing me…"

"Right he showed you 'his place'" I said with air quotes. She made the immediate connection with our first date and Saturday night.

"It's not like that with Elijah and me." She answered as she shut her locker hard.

"O really and what is it like? Really tell me. I wanna know." I bit back. I knew I was being a total ass but I couldn't stop myself.

"Don't be douche Damon!" she yelled

"I'm the douche? I'm not the one sneaking around during our so called relationship break."

"There is nothing going on between Elijah and me. I like you Damon, not him. You either believe me or you don't." she said mad as picked up her crutches.

"I could possibly believe you, if weren't for the fact that both the Mikaelson brothers are notorious womanizers!"

She rolled her eyes. "You obviously don't know Elijah."

"O please! And you do?" I challenged. She began to walk away and I followed her.

"Yes I do," She insisted. She was the new girl in school, how could she know? I knew… not her.

"Well enlighten me please! I wanna know how Elijah wouldn't put the moves on my ex-girlfriend."

The word ex-girlfriend came out before I could stop myself. Maybe it was the conversation with Alaric or my anger but the word Elena stopped right in her tracks.

"Damon… can't you just trust me? Elijah's not like that." She said desperately as if she wanted to say more but something was stopping her.

I shook my head. Why couldn't she just see this my way? The Mikaelson brothers were bad news. Elijah came up to us a second later.

"Hey lena, hey Damon. Did you still want that ride home? Or is Damon taking you after your tutoring session?" Elijah said in a polite tone.

"Give me a minute Elijah," Elena whispered

I turned to look her. Logic wasn't with me. I felt like she was choosing me over him. I didn't feel like spending another minute talking about this. I also didn't want to hear her choice.

"Just go Elena, we're done." I told her. The words "we're done" had another meaning than the end of the conversation. As I turned to leave, she caught the implication.

"Done with what DAMON!" she yelled after me. She not able to follow at my pace with her crutches.

"With this relationship!" I yelled and walked out of school.

* * *

**Elena's POV…**

**Saturday morning…**

I woke up with a fright this morning. The edge of my hair was slightly matted with sweat and my breaths were uneven when I noticed my dream wasn't reality. Today was not a good day. I took my blankets off fast and hopped into the shower before any demons surfaced. I wasn't in the mood to wallow in anything.

I took my time in the shower since I had a free day. Caroline texted me yesterday about hanging out at her place until the Mikaelson party. I wasn't supposed to be there until six thirty. Her dad was apparently making some amazing lasagna for dinner at seven.

Then last night's moment crossed through my head. I almost kissed Damon. I was sure he noticed even though I quickly caught myself. This limbo was not going to be simple …but it was helping. Damon and I weren't rushing into anything but we were still moving forward. He trusted me last night. He actually called me for a favor. He was allowing me to enter his life without a fight.

I smiled at the thought. What a place to think of Damon… in the shower.

As soon as I got out of the shower, I knew what I wanted to do or what I needed to do. If Damon was able to lean on me yesterday, then didn't that mean I could lean on him? I had already started the day on the wrong foot. Seeing Damon would only lift my mood. I got dressed quickly before I began looking for my phone.

Where the hell was it! I looked in my purse, under my bed, in the bathroom, it wasn't in my room. Whew! I swear the smartphone was the bane of my existence. It always got lost. Not that it sprouted legs and ran from me but it was better to blame it than on my own forgetfulness.

I made my way downstairs to check my car when I heard noises from the kitchen. A man and a woman were talking, and Jeremy was not an early bird on the weekends. It was nine thirty in the morning so I wondered who our visitor could possibly be. I was hoping Damon surprised me again. Maybe I could convince him to make me some banana pancakes.

I was sadly mistaken. It was Alaric. He was coming by more and more often.

"Good morning Elena," he said with a cup of joe. I greeted my aunt and him before I asked if anyone had seen my phone. They both said no. So I asked Alaric about the history paper I had just turned in. He smiled.

"Elena, you have to wait until Monday to see your grade," Alaric said shaking his head with a smile.

"So you've graded them already," I answered

"Yes, but I can't tell you." he insisted

"Aww… what's the perk of you dating my Aunt if I don't get special treatment," I joked

Alaric laughed but Aunt Jenna rolled her eyes.

"Well, I will tell you this. Your essay made the civil war much more interesting than it actually was. You are an amazingly talented writer."

I grinned from ear to ear.

"What are you planning for your future career?"

"Umm… journalist, novelist… any type of writer." I answered

"NYU has an amazing English program." Alaric answered

I smiled, "I'll look into it."

The rest of the conversation dealt with different schools and career paths. Aunt Jenna saw my uncertainty with a lot of the questions. She intruded Alaric's question assault to ask me about my plans for the day. I was relieved. I told her I was thinking about going to Anna's house. I figured it was better than saying I was going to Damon's apartment.

Aunt Jenna was more than okay with it. I thank Alaric for Aunt Jenna's fast approval. Alaric loved Damon. He constantly raved about him, even though he frequently mentioned how stubborn Damon could be.

I excused myself from the kitchen to continue searching for my phone in the car, the living room, and even Jeremy's room. I wanted to give Damon a call before I just happened to stop by. I didn't know his number by heart. I finally gave up and decided just to stop by. No harm in a friendly visit. I figured I'd buy coffee on the way over as bribe.

…

I got there around ten-thirty. Damon was gone. He had work…

I remember thinking I wanted Damon to be at the karaoke bar last night but he had work. I breathed in, thinking it was fine. Damon had responsibilities, I had to face that. If I wanted to be a relationship with Damon I'd have to remember that. His family and his responsibilities were first. His girlfriends had to take a backseat.

Anna and I spent the morning talking about Will. In her words, "I'm so over him, I already forgot what he looked like."

I smiled. Around noon, Big Mike and Liz dropped off the kids. Effy was a bundle of energy as she walked in. "Ewena! You're here! You're here!" she said when we she saw me.

Big Mike and Liz took their leave soon after. They left us with some home-made raviolis. After we had lunch we headed over to the park since Effy and Eazy were both restless.

Anna and I sat on a bench as we looked over to the playground. I noticed Eazy was very protective over Effy. He watched her like a hawk. I smiled, he was a tiny Damon watching over his little sister.

"So are you going to the Mikaelson party?" Anna asked after awhile

I nodded.

"You should take Damon with you! It could be like your second date!" she insisted

I smiled tightly. "I don't think dates are allowed during limbo," I said quietly. Limbo sucked.

Anna's face looked confused. I figured that I was only one that used the word 'limbo', a place neither here nor there. Damon must have used the word 'break'.

"You know our relationship break," I clarified

"What are you talking about? Damon didn't tell me this." She said. I froze. Crap! I thought she knew. Why hadn't Damon told her? I found out a second later when she had a mini-freak out. She was highly invested in our relationship.

"Damon is so stupid! I swear half the time, I wonder if his head wasn't attached to his body!" she said after I refused to tell her any details. I figured if Damon hadn't told her, then I shouldn't be telling her.

I giggled, "I'm pretty sure Damon is a genius."

"Yea in school but I mean in life. He never knows what's good for him… but whatever since you won't tell me, I'll ask him. I wanted to tell you about my ninja turtle plan."

I laughed. "What's the ninja turtle plan?"

Anna finally smiled. "Well I just like giving things funny names. Like bananas and pajamas. The ninja turtle plan is just called ninja turtle 'cause it's sneaky."

"Okay… what is it?"

"Well, Mr. Saltzman and I have been planning it for a while. He's the scholarship and college guidance counselor. He's got five application fees waived for Damon. So I want to apply Damon to some colleges."

I don't why the next words flew out of my mouth but they were the first things that popped into my head. "Is that legal?"

Anna shrugged. "I don't know maybe. I know all of his personal information but Alaric is doing most of the work. He's getting his recommendation letters, his transcript. I just have to fill out the form but I need a little help from you."

"Me?" I asked. What could I do?

"Well, Alaric sorta mentioned you were a good writer. I need some good essay writing. Damon already took the tests."

My eyes went wide. "Will Damon get mad if we do this?"

"Like I said he never knows what's good for him. Plus he'll be mad for like a week maybe… just think of it this way. We're leaving him options."

"Okay… I'll write them. Send me the topics."

…

We got back around three. Effy and Eazy were exhausted. I made quick call home to tell Aunt Jenna was heading to Caroline's for dinner. I wanted to give Damon a quick call too, but he was still working and I didn't want to be overbearing.

I played with Effy and Eazy while Anna went on a craze to clean the entire apartment. I asked her several times what she was doing. She wasn't clear about her intentions. I giggled when Eazy whispered, "Anna's gone kuku." Effy twirled her finger next to her ear to signify the same thing. After awhile they settled down for a movie so that Anna could mopped the floors. I helped pick the toys. It was around six. I needed to head out soon before I became notorious for being late. I said my good byes before I took off. I was hoping to catch Damon before I headed to Caroline's but luck was not on my side.

After dinner, we went to change in Caroline's room. My change of clothes were in the back of my car. Bonnie was there and we all decided we should have a sleep over. Caroline's bedroom was huge and so was her mansion of a house. She explained to me that the Mikaelson's home was bigger. I gaped.

We discussed everything from classes to boys while we got ready. Caroline hogged most of the conversation about boys.

"I'm not saying that Tyler is a terrible boyfriend but where is the zsa-zsa-zsu?" She asked both of us.

I looked to Bonnie for an explanation. She shrugged. Caroline acknowledged our confusion and explained further.

"You know… the sparks. The my knees are gonna give out because this kiss is so intense or every time you touch me I want you take me in your arms' kinda feeling. Zsa- zsa-zsu!"

Bonnie laughed but I got the point.

"I get it. You want to be swept off your feet?" I elaborated

"Not only that. I want to fall in love so deeply that I can't breathe. I want a guy doesn't ask to kiss me when he wants to."

Bonnie shook her head. "You had that once it was called Damon Salvatore, and look how that turned out. Him dumping you for sex with Kat."

My eyes went wide. Caroline looked like she was scolding Bonnie with her eyes. Bonnie immediately turned to me.

"O my god! I'm sorry Elena. Sometimes I talk without thinking. I don't think… I mean… I'm so sorry."

I smiled awkwardly. Then I told her it was fine. Being with Damon was knees shaking, can't breathe kinda stuff. I just hoped my ending was more of a happily ever after.

…

We headed over the party around nine thirty. My brother and I decided he'd take my car home after Alaric embarrassingly dropped him off. I told Bonnie I'd be driving back with them. The party got going after awhile but to tell you the truth I was bored.

The music was too loud to talk, drunk guys kept tugging on my dress and I was damn jealous of every couple in this room. I was literally the only one truly sober within the first half hour. I didn't want to drink. I was over it for the time being. My last experience hadn't been too thrilling. I puked into bushes at school.

I wasn't surprised when people walked away from me, I wasn't a bundle of joy or at all very friendly. I was the girl in the bad mood, who should have stayed home. Truth be told, I just wanted to be home and go to bed. I walked upstairs where less people were hanging out. There was an enormous line for the girl's bathroom. I waited there just to have something to do. I didn't have to go at all. That's when Katherine came up to me.

"Elena, right?" she asked me

I nodded my head lazily as she stepped closer to me.

"You must really be something to have Damon wrapped around your little finger."

"What do you want Kat?" I asked

"Nothing much. I just didn't think you'd be here. In my house." She said with an eyebrow raised

"I was invited. I came." I said simply

She shrugged with a smile as an idea seemed to pop in her head. "You know what, I think we should start over. Clean slate. What do you think?"

I looked at her confused. Her brother Klaus pushed me into a fence and yelled at me. Damon kicked both hi ass. She tripped me in the locker halls. I pulled her hair. It was dead even from my count.

"Okay… friends." I said taking out my hand to shake. Everybody deserves a second chance in my opinion.

She shook my hand in return. "I wouldn't go that far. Why don't we just say 'not enemies'?"

I nodded and she continued to talk. "You know this line is humongous, let me show a private bathroom"

I wasn't about to tell her I didn't really need to pee, she was doing me a favor. "Okay where?" I asked eagerly and she took me to a room down the hall.

She pulled out a key from her back pocket to open the door. I looked inside it was a bedroom. I was about to step out when she pushed me inside. I balanced myself and reached for the knob but I was too late she had locked the door.

Both sides of the doorknob were locked and unlocked by keys. It was an old fashioned house. I had no way of getting out.

"What's going on?" I yelled to Katherine as I banged on the locked door.

"Consider this payback for the frogs! I had goop all over me!" she yelled then I heard her walk away. I tried jiggling the knob several times before I considered it useless. The door was a heavy looking wooden door with a lock meant to keep people out or in.

I spent the next hour trying to be MacGyver. I even tried using bobby pins on the lock. After twenty minutes I figured I'd have to cross small-time robber off my list of career choices. Shucks! I was really rooting for that career path.

Well this day was certainly a bummer. I looked out the window before deciding I was too chicken to try jumping out or climbing down the trellis. Lara croft I was not. So after forty minutes I decided that it didn't matter. The party was a bust for me anyway. The best part of party was watching Klaus singing, _Stayin' Alive_ on top of the grand piano.

I laid down on the bed wishing I had my phone. At least then I could call someone for help. No one could heard my yells with the music blasting. I suddenly looked at the clock on the night stand, it was eleven at night.

…

By the time the hour mark hit. I saw the door knob being jiggled opened. I sat up on the bed to see who it was. It was Elijah taking off his shirt as he walked in.

"What are you doing!" I yelled when I thought he had some other ideas. I don't know, a guy walks into a bedroom shedding his clothes as you lay on a bed. What was I supposed to assume?

He put down his shirt and look at me. "Klaus slipped his beer all over my shirt. I wanted to get a new one." He answered, "But isn't the better question, what are you doing in my room?"

He kicked the door shut. The sound of the music blasting got muffled. "God damn music, I cant even think with it blaring," he said with a half-smile as he walked to his dresser. His room was impossibly clean for a teenager. I honestly thought I was in a guest bedroom.

"Your sister locked me in here," I confessed

He laughed a little. "Figures, my sister can be quite petty."

He started to button up a new shirt. I didn't walk out the door. I liked it better in here anyway.

"You don't seem that happy to be here?" he asked when he button the last button.

"Having bad day." I answered all too quickly. It was probably my starvation for a normal conversation without yelling over the music.

"Care to tell me about it?" he asked

I shook my head. He smiled.

"Sometimes it's better to tell a stranger than a friend," he pursued.

I shook my head. "I don't think I want to tell a Mikaelson brother," I joked finding it easy to talk to him.

He laughed, "Are you judging me on the actions of my half-brother Klaus?"

"Half-brother?" I asked a bit curious

Elijah took seat on the bed next to my feet. "Yea, my father was a very… promiscuous man. I'm a few months older but we're both in the same grade."

I said nothing back so he continued. "Well I told you something about my life, now you have to tell me something about yours."

I smiled. "I have brother who's a sophomore."

Elijah rolled his eyes. "I already knew that piece of information. Tell me a secret instead."

"No, I don't know you. Plus, everybody probably knows you're Klaus's half-brother. That's common town knowledge."

Elijah smiled wide. "Fine, so if I tell you secret, a deep dark secret, then you'll tell me what's bothering you?"

I looked at him suspiciously. "Okay… tell me a secret."

Elijah got up from the bed and looked at me intently. "Then you must promise never to tell a soul."

"I promise. Your secret is safe with me," I said eager to listen.

"Well then… I play for the other team." He said almost in a whisper

I looked at him not understanding at first. "What do you mean?" Then it clicked. O the other team… as in Elijah was gay.  
"I get it." I admitted after a pause. He huffed humorously at my surprise.

"I haven't even told my brother yet. So guard that secret with your life." He told me half-kidding and half-serious.

I nodded then he looked at me expectantly. I sighed. "Well my bad day started this morning. I had bad dream or more like a bad memory."

"What was it about?" he pursued

"The night my parents died." I said and Elijah sat back down on the bed. His eyes focused intently on mine.

I proceeded to tell Elijah about the night my parent's died. He listened with a patient ear. I told him how they were just going on a date night. They should've been back early at night. Jeremy and I waited for them the entire night. Elijah nodded, encouraged me to go on. I gulped before I told him my secret. A secret only Jeremy was aware of. I told Elijah how I couldn't hold myself together that night the call came in. The police called the house telling us our parents were involved in fatal car crash. I told Elijah how I couldn't stop crying, because I couldn't believe it. I told him what a horrible example I was to my brother, as he had to take the reigns that night. The next morning, I decided I couldn't act so foolishly anymore. I had responsibilities, I had Jeremy. So I locked myself in, I closed myself off. I wasn't going to have a repeat of that night. Elijah nodded before he spoke.

"Elena, the past is the past and you cannot change it. You might have done something wrong but you can only look to the future. You have to release whatever is troubling your mind."

I shook my head, hearing the words but not taking them in. Elijah grabbed my hand a second later, "Come on, I have somewhere I want to show you."

…

We walked out of the mansion, to his back yard that edged the forest. We walked past the forest fast, as he constantly looked at his watch.

"Elijah where are you taking me?" I asked almost out of breath as he half-dragged me past the forest.

"The train station. Hurry we have to get there before the train comes by." He said in a rush still looking at his watch.

"Why?" I asked as I rushed to keep up with him.

"Have you ever watched the movie _Footloose_. The original one with Kevin Bacon?"

I nodded my head and he continued. "Where there's a scene where Kevin's leading lady stands in front of the train and screams her life out until he saves her. DO you remember that scene?" he asked when we got to the tracks.

I nodded, "Sure"

"Well, Klaus and I decided to do that one day when were like… thirteen. We decided to scream our life's out until the train came dangerous close to hitting us."

"Why?" I asked disbelieving as he placed me on top of the railroad tracks. I was afraid as the train popped out from the horizon.

"For release. Trust me Elena, it feels amazing. Just remember to jump out of the way."

I looked at him like he was crazy. He laughed and continued to speak, "Just extend both your arms out and scream. That's all you have to do."

"Elijah, I don't think…"

Elijah moved off the tracks and left me there. "Scream Elena."

"I don't want…"

"Scream Elena! Let it go!" The train was now in full view. I decided to give it a try. I screamed a little.

"Louder!" he yelled over the train. I did.

"Louder!" he yelled again and I screamed louder. Then louder. Until finally I was yelling so loud, I couldn't hear anything else. I pushed my arms in front me and the world went away. Like everything had disappeared. It was just me and the train. Nothing else. No sound no people just me and the train.

As it came closer and closer, the release it gave me became addicting. I tried to scream louder but I couldn't. The train came closer and closer. I couldn't move it was just me and the train. Closer and closer. The train began to ring its bell. Closer and closer. The train was now dangerously close, no chance of stopping, no chance of me moving. Closer and closer until BANG!

I saw the train pass by me as lay on the floor with Elijah crouched over me. He pushed me out the way before the train touched me.

"What the hell, Elena! You were supposed to move out of the way. Didn't you hear me screaming?" he asked

I shook my head as I caught my breath. I looked at him with a smile. "That was amazing," I exclaimed as he burst out laughing.

"You really are something Elena but I'm just not what you are." He told me still laughing

I smiled widely. Then it began to rain. I tried to get up but then I yelled in pain as I step on my left leg.

"What's wrong?" Elijah asked as the rain came down harder.

"My ankle hurts. I think I twisted it when you pulled me out of the way."

He wrapped his arm around my waist as I wrapped my arm around his neck. We were walking at the slowest pace possible thanks to me. We tried to go faster as the rain began to pour.

"Elena, we're going to be supremely wet at your pace." Elijah commented before he picked me up. The surprise of it had me wrapping my arms around his neck tightly.

"Don't drop me!" I pleaded and he laughed hysterically.

"Now you care for your safety?" he asked incredulously and I laughed with him finding his laugh contagious. Well the day hadn't ended that badly. I just had a sprained ankle and maybe a cold waiting for me back at the mansion.

* * *

**This chapter is super long so I have to end it here, Sorry and I hope you were able to put the pieces together. **

**I'm not expecting delena fans to absolutely love this chapter but if you need further explanation i did write on my profile page to explain a little.**


	18. Girl meets Sept 30th

**The following Monday… Sept 30th**

If someone had told me last week that I would soon be punch drunk with Klaus at a sport's bar, I would have told them that they were crazy. First of all, I had been trying to stay sober since my last encounter with alcohol. I didn't handle it very well. Second, I wasn't very fond of Klaus… at all. Like, he'd be the last person I would want to be trapped on an island with. Yet, here I am lip-synching to an 80's pop rock song on the bartender's counter as Klaus and the rest of the drunks here cheer me on. There are only a few sober people left in the crowd including my best friend Matty. He's been trying to get me out of this bar for a while now. I protested against his pleas to a breaking point then finally he gave up. Now he was content on babysitting me from a distance.

I'm a bit clumsy dancing on the bar but the bartender doesn't seem to mind. It feels good, like dancing on air letting the rest of the world melt away. I was moving my hips and shaking my hair when the music suddenly stopped. Everybody turned around to see the culprit who stopped the music. I see two men standing next to the old stereo the bartender had just pulled out. Both of the men's faces are very familiar, because… well they belong to Damon and Elijah. They both look at me like I had just committed a crime; I smile at them in response. I hadn't committed a crime but I was certainly in some trouble. The crowd starts to yell at the boys.

"Hey! Turn the music back on!"

"Let the girl dance!"

"Shit heads!"

They ignore it. As Damon comes up to me, Matt approaches him.

"I've been asking her to leave with me for over an hour now. She's just too stubborn," Matt explains to Damon. Damon shakes his head in disapproval.

"I'm not leaving," I tell Damon with my arms crossed, still stubborn as hell.

He wraps one arm around both of my legs and throws me over his right shoulder.

"Well, I'm not asking," Damon says as he carries me through the crowd. The crowd opens up like the red sea.

"Let me go!" I yell at Damon as I fight against his grip. The bartender finally speaks, "The lady doesn't want to leave."

I smile when Damon stops moving and turns to look at the bartender. I'm thinking he's going to let me go when the bartender grabs a baseball bat from under the counter.

"Well the lady is eighteen, and I've got Sheriff Forbes on speed dial. I have a good feeling she'd like to know if you've been serving minors," Damon says without even blinking and then continues to carry me out the door. He doesn't stop to hear or see the bartender's response. I'm guessing the baseball was returned to its holding place. Serving Minors would probably result in having his license revoked.

But I think I'm getting ahead of myself here. There were a lot of little moments that led up to this point in time. I guess it started last week, when Damon broke up with me. However since it was September 30th, I guess it started two years ago when my mom and I first began to plan my big 18th birthday trip.

I don't want to get into the gory details of last two years of my life but I can explain what happened last week. Damon broke up with me on Monday because he saw me with Elijah and jumped to conclusions. By Tuesday, everybody knew about the split since he broke up with me in the locker hall and the news spread like wild fire. By Wednesday, it was all out war between Damon and me. Any conversation we had ended up in anger and screams. By Thursday, we had resorted to completely ignoring each other. Finding Elijah to lean on was helpful but Klaus followed us everywhere. Then today, the day of birthday, I found myself sitting on the floor of the locker hall hating myself for actually going to school. Klaus had seen me and somehow convinced me to ditch school with him. Matt had just happened to show up after his football practice with a couple of friends. He found me by coincidence. Today was just one hell of a mess.

**A few hours before, Damon POV**

I was more than tired as I walked into the grill ready to start the shift. Anna had been up late trying to bake a 'sorry for my brother and omg it's your 18th birthday' cake. She had me supervising as she followed an old family recipe. She had the cake ready by one in the morning and had me do the frosting.

Now I was dead tired and mad at Elena for not showing up for lunch or Math class. Anna was also upset because she had spent so much time baking the darn cake. When lunch was over, Anna handed me the cake to give to Elena during Math class. I didn't think that was such a bright idea since Elena and I had been fighting all week. So I initially said no but Anna pushed it in my hands and told me to stop being such a 'baby'.

I walked into Math class nervous, only to find out that she had ditched. Now I had a melting birthday cake as I walked into work. The only good thing about last week was the call I got from Sheriff Forbes. She had found my dad under the bridge of a freeway. He arrived dirty hungry and in one piece. Like usual, Effy and Eazy cried in glee that their father had finally come home. Their love for Damon Senior had no limit.

"You're early, Damon. Wow I guess people can change" Trevor said pretentiously as I walked through the entrance. Crap! Trevor was here. I should have known since it was payday and he had to stay to distribute the checks.

I made my way into the kitchen without a word. I laid the untouched cake on the kitchen counter and began my day. Today was slow since it was a Monday. Three hours into my shift I was sitting down catching cherry tomatoes with my mouth.

Trevor came rushing in, as usual.

"Damon, someone's here to see you!" Trevor half-yelled.

"Who is it?" I questioned since I wasn't expecting anybody

"A Michaelson! You better be on your best behavior!" Trevor yelled with animated arms. I didn't think Trevor had a lower volume for his booming voice.

"I'm really not the mood to play nice, especially if I have to be nice to a Michealson," I answered calmly.

"Who said I asked! A damn michaelson wants to speak to you for some god unknown reason! His daddy practically owns this town! Get out there or you won't have a job tomorrow! I'll fire you!" Trevor yelled. O the magic words! I'll fire you. He knew I needed this job. He knew I couldn't afford to lose this job. So he constantly used those magic words to get me to do anything.

Of course, I could get another job but I liked this one. It was close, familiar and flexible. Plus I didn't want to work for Uncle in any permanent way. The less I depended on him the better. So I got up from my stool to see which Michaelson wanted to see me. At first I thought it might be Katherine but snooty Trevor had used some male pronouns so it had to be one of the brothers.

I saw Elijah on the counter and almost turned back. At this point I would have been happier to see Klaus.

"What do you want Elijah?" I asked in the most unpleasant tone I could manage.

"Elena is missing," He answered. I couldn't help but feel concerned even though I fought it.

"Why are you telling me this?" I asked as I took a seat across from him. I tried to look unaffected.

"I thought you might want to know. Nobody knows where she's at. Her Aunt is searching high and low for her. They said she ditched school."

"She did, she wasn't in math class."

"I think she's with Klaus." He answered quietly

"What makes you think that?" I asked in sudden surprise. Hanging out with the quiet brother was one thing but Klaus was a different story.

"Well for one he stole my car, he crashed his a month ago. So he must be up to something and second he's been fairly upset about a mystery girl."

"Elena would never hang out with him," I said disbelieving.

"Can you be so sure?" he questioned me.

"Yea, I know her better than you," I said almost as a challenge

"I haven't seen you around this past week," he accused with piercing eyes

I scowled at him.

"A lot can change in a week and I've noticed some odd things about Elena."

"Like what?"

"Well for starters she's a thriller seeker. Everywhere we go, she keeps pushing the limits of our adventures. The night of the party…"

"Right, that night. Maybe you can shed some light on that since Elena refuses to comment on it."

"It's not what you think Damon," he said defensively.

"That's what she keeps saying," I brushed off

"Damon, Elena is really not my type." He answered with intent look in his eye. What did he mean she wasn't his type? Elena was every guy's type. She was beautiful inside and out. He'd be so lucky if she took one look at him.

"Damon… not that's any of your business but you seem to be as stubborn as a mule. I'm not with Elena. I don't fancy Elena. Elena and I are just friends. I would consider her features to be too feminine for my tastes."

"Do you mean…" I insinuated. I didn't want to jump to the wrong conclusions.

"Yes and I appreciate Elena keeping my secret even though it could have possibly saved her relationship with you. Elena is an extremely selfless person, to have done such a task."

I felt really stupid at the moment. I should have taken Elena's word for it. I should have believed her. Even if Elijah was actually straight as a line, I should have put more trust in her.

Elijah continued, "The point is the night of the party, I took her to a railroad station and placed in front of a train."

"You what!" I half yelled. Some people sitting the bar turned around.

"She was supposed to move out of the way when it got near. I actually had to save her."

"What hell is wrong with you!"

"She wasn't feeling good, so I thought I was doing her a favor but she's pushing risks too far. She always looking for a certain feeling of release. I think it has something to do with the night her parents died."

"What happened?" I pursued

"Well from she told me, she broke down really bad. Like she couldn't stop crying or get up. Jeremy had to do everything for her that night. After that she swore she would never let that happen again. In my opinion she been holding everything in and now her body is just looking for some release."

"She's not harming herself is she?" I asked because I didn't know anything about Elena this past week. I was avoiding her texts and her calls. Plus anytime we saw each other we would just end up in some fight.

"Well, not intentionally but the worst that has happened was twisting her ankle. But she's been pushing her luck."

"Do you have any idea where she might be?"

"Klaus likes this bar on the outskirts of town. My father owns it, so they serve him drinks without ID."

I took off my apron. "Come on, we'll take my car." I offered. Elijah nodded and I went to grab my keys from the kitchen.

"Where are you going!" Trevor yelled when I walked out of the kitchen.

"I have an emergency." I explained

"No, no. You get back in that kitchen!" Trevor yelled

"No one's here Trevor and I can call Big Mike to cover my shift." I said making my way to the front door.

"You walk got that door and you're fired!" Trevor yelled with a giant grin. The magic words again.

"Trevor, my friend might be in danger and I need to go help her."

"And you are working right now. Is she more important than your job!"

I put my hands through my hair as I contemplated my next move. "You know what Trevor, fire me! You're a pain in the ass" I said before I walked out the door.

When I got to my car, Elijah waited for me to open the passenger door.

"You sure that was a smart idea?" he asked when we both got situated

"Nope and I might regret my choice of words later but I can never stop myself from doing stupid things."

Elijah shrugged. "So what's the plan?" he asked

"Easy, I grab Elena and take her home. You grab your car and take yourself home."

"That's your magnificent plan?" he questioned

"You can take Klaus with you if you like." I offered.

Elijah sighed at my imperfect plan. "O, I almost forgot to remind you."

"What?"

"It's September 30th" he said with specific look on his face.

"What does that have to with anything?" I asked starting the car.

"It's Elena D-day."

**Present time, Damon POV **

When we finally reached my car, I took Elena off my shoulder. Then I pinned her to my car door, as I looked for my keys. I didn't want her to run away. I was mad at her. I was worried about her. I wanted to yell at her. I wanted to hug her. I just wanted to get her home, safe.

Then she surprised me when she started to kiss me. To say I was confused was an understatement. When I responded, it took me a while to get back to reality. After our week-long hiatus, I didn't mind the surprise attack but reality hit me hard. I pulled away from her fast.

"Elena what are you doing?" I asked still inches away from her mouth. Still staring at her slightly swollen lips.

"Kissing you, silly" she responded and brought me closer. I was able to dodge her this time, and then I grabbed her face to regain control of the situation.

"Elena, no. I need to get you home. Your family has been worried sick about you," I told her as I buried my eyes into her eyes.

She looked at me mad but her expression changed quickly. She looked at me slyly as she told me, "Well I won't tell you if won't tell. We could say you found me later on the night."

I looked at her not comprehending. She needed to get home. There was no more lying, no more running.

"No, we need to get you home. You have responsibilities Elena, to your brother, to your Aunt. You've got a life to get back to." I told her with some more zeal. I was trying to get through to her.

She frowned. "No way. I was having fun, I was letting go. I was living life here," she said as she removed my hands from her face.

"Elena, stop screwing around." I told her a bit exasperated.

Elena rolled her eyes, like if I was just lecturing her. "O yeah 'cause your Mr. responsibility, Mr. family first. Well to tell you the truth I'm Miss Trainwreck right now, so just leave me the hell alone," She said cruelly. This wasn't Elena. This was drunk Elena and mad Elena but worst of all this was hurt Elena.

She struggled to get out of my grip but I held firmly.

"For god sakes, Damon. Why don't you just leave me alone! Let me go!" she cried as pushed my chest.

"No" I told her trying to make her understand that I didn't want to leave her alone. She shouldn't be left alone right now and she shouldn't be left with Klaus ever.

"Damon, you don't trust me, we fight all the time now. I threw myself at you a moment ago and you couldn't careless. What do you want from me? I don't have much to give right now! Can't you see me? Can't you tell? If you push me too hard, I'm gonna break." She said crying as shoving my chest with her hands over and over.

I looked at her with the worst pain in my chest but it wasn't from her constant shoves. It was the pain I was beginning to share with her. "I don't want anything from you," I told her as I wiped the tears from her face as she began to hyperventilate, "I just want to be here for you right now."

She started to sob louder but she stopped trying to hurt me. She pulled me closer then pushed me away as she walked away. Now she was wiping the tears from her cheeks with the back of her hands. My guess was that she was trying to hide the evidence that she was having a breakdown.

"Elena, tell me what's wrong," I pleaded as I followed her. She was walking back to the bar. I grabbed her hand and pulled her back.

"I don't want to tell you," she argued as she tugged to get her arm back. I didn't let her go.

"Elijah, told me. He told me about the night they died. He told me how you promised you wouldn't do that again. He told me everything about that night." I said to get conversation going. She looked betrayed as she took in my words.

"That was private! He shouldn't have told you that."

"Well he did, but he never told me about September 30th, he says you keep calling it D-day. What's so important about today Elena? What's so bad about your 18th birthday?" I asked begging to be included. Wanting to know, wanting to help her. Needing to know, needing to help her.

"Since when did you become such good friends with Elijah? Apparently you trust him, more than you trust me since you don't have any problems with him now. When I told you nothing was going on between him and me, you couldn't trust one word!"

"Elena, I'm sorry I didn't trust you. I was stupid. I'm an idiot more than half the time if you haven't noticed. But that's not the point right now," I told her and she stopped struggling to get free.

"What do you mean that's not the point! You told me we were friends first!" she yelled at me with exasperated breaths, and then she whispered, "You said you'd be there for me. Well I needed you this week and you abandon me. I didn't abandon you."

I gulped as I finally took in why she suddenly built a twenty foot wall between us. "I'm sorry. I was mad and I let my anger at the situation dictate my actions but I'm here now. I'm not leaving now. Tell me, what's wrong Elena?" I said as loud as I could. My voice was escaping me as I saw new tears leave Elena's eyes. I wanted her to trust me now even though I hadn't deserved it. I had abandoned her this entire week, because I had convinced myself I couldn't trust her. Now I was just longing for her to give me what I hadn't been able to give her. Trust.

She looked at me in the face and saw what she needed to see. Then she grabbed my hand and led me back to my car. I didn't question her as we walked in silence, I could tell she was contemplating what to say to me.

When I was finally situated in the driver's seat, I looked to her for directions. This was her time.

"Drive," she told me

"Where?"

"Your barn, I don't want to go home yet."

**Present time Elena's POV…**

I didn't say anything as we walked to the barn. I was out of my skin, and unwilling to crawl back into it. Damon didn't try to break the silence, he gave me my space. This last week had been hard for me. Even if I did have Elijah he wasn't Damon. Elijah didn't always say the right things, and half the time he couldn't understand me. Then again, he had never lost a parent or anybody dangerously close to him. However, I didn't know how much I could ask from Damon without taking too much.

As we settled into the seats that were once meant for our first date, I became calm. The words flowed without any struggle. I was with Damon and again this moment offered no threat to my sanity.

"When I was sixteen, I got the idea of a European trip stuck in my head," I began, "I wanted to see Paris, London, Rome, Barcelona, any place really. I just wanted to see the other side of the world. My parents obviously couldn't afford it but for my sixteenth birthday my mother told me that she'd take me when I turned eighteen."

Damon smiled lightly at the thought, but the inevitably of my story was already set. Nevertheless I continued the story.

"It was a big deal for me. My mother and I would talk about it all the time. We would say that we'd climb the Eiffel tower and eat croissants all day when we got to Paris or visit the open markets in Barcelona and carry tons of souvenirs to bring back home. I never had a sweet sixteen because we were always saving up for the trip."

I don't know why I didn't cry while I told Damon the story. I guess the lights and the atmosphere made the story sound sweet and hopeful, as if the ending could suddenly change paths.

"So when I woke up this morning, I thought about all the planning and sacrifices my parents made so that I could have that slice of happiness. It was the trip I had always dreamed about, the trip that never happened. I didn't want to celebrate my birthday anymore. I wanted everyone to forget about it but no one got the memo. I didn't think anyone would know it was 18th birthday, since I was the new girl in town but word got out. After Aunt Jenna's special birthday breakfast, I thought I was home free but then Caroline decorated my locker. Then Alaric had everyone sing happy birthday to me. Then Lunch came around and I rushed to the outside cafeteria hoping no one knew but…"

"Anna had baked you a cake." He answered.

"And I love her for doing that for me but I didn't want to be reminded of my birthday this year. I wanted to skip through it without anybody noticing it." I said trying to explain

"Elena, I know I haven't been there for you this week but let me be here for you now. You can trust me, I won't leave you again." Damon said as reached to touch my shoulder. I let him. I didn't push away. Instead I stepped in closer to him and let him wrap his arms around me.

"I won't ask for more than I'm allowed to take from you," I whispered making that clear.

He looked at me with sad eyes. "Take whatever you need, I don't break easily."

I wasn't sure how true his words were, Big Mike had warned me how fragile Damon could actually be. Nevertheless, Damon was strong. I don't believe he knew his limits but he would never stop pushing himself. Damon needed someone and I needed someone. Somehow, I figured we could lean on each other and take care of each other so that we could have strength in the eyes of others. Tonight, however, he would take care of me. Tonight he had decided it was his turn.

After a while he took me on his lap and cradled me with his arms. I was crying because he let me and allowed to me to be vulnerable. Tonight it was okay think about the night my parents had died.

**Present time, Damon's POV…**

As I held Elena in my arms her body trembled from the emotion she tried to suppress for so long. She cried harder at times, as if remembering something specifically. Then she quieted down as if she was trying to regain control again. I held her tighter when she tried to do that. I wanted her to know that she was safe and that she was allowed to break down. Elena was the type of person who put everyone in front of herself but it was to a fault. She needed to know that sometimes you put yourself first.

She was the type of person, who stood up for her brother even though she was scared herself. She was the type of person, to be open to any type of friend despite what they dressed like or social status. She was the type of person, who would babysit for someone they had just met. She was also the type of person who kept someone's secret even if it hurt her along the way. Elena was an amazing person and it was truly no wonder that even at her most exposed point (with every fault on display) that I could say that I was deeply, madly and irrevocably in love with her.

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**Sorry about the lack of updates. I couldn't put my ideas on page. I hope this chapter was good, i just couldn't figure out how to write it. **


	19. Girl meets Dr West

**The chapter is written in an unusual way. Both perspectives are present again except Damon is experiencing Saturday and Elena is talking about Saturday. Plus I skipped over a couple of months. **

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**Damon POV, Saturday…**

It had been two months since 'the incident' and with every passing day it was getting harder and harder to keep my secret from Elena. Yet, how do you tell your best friend that you are madly in love with her? Especially, when she needs you as a friend more than anything else. It seemed selfish and cruel to push her into anything she wasn't ready for.

She had been seeing a therapist since the 'the incident' so she was dealing with her emotions better. Nevertheless, she was still fragile so I pushed myself to be patient. Which was becoming more and more impossible since I was also suffering from a self-inflicted dry spell.

I was afraid Elena would clearly see through my poorly made façade, since I couldn't seem to keep my hands off her. I don't mean I tried to jump her, I meant I couldn't help but tuck back every stray hair behind her ear. I almost always had my arm around her when we walked down the hall. It was a poor attempt to keep any other contenders away.

I also preferred to whisper in her ear, than tell her something from a distance. It drove Anna crazy, since she always liked to be in the loop. Which was odd since she was becoming more and more secretive herself, Anna was up to something lately. It quite possibly involved Jeremy.

As I laid on my bed I tried to fall back asleep. I had a grueling shift at Anastasia's last night. I lost my job at the grill after 'the incident'. Calling the owner's son a pain in the ass had not been my brightest idea. I had to find a job quickly, so after two unemployed days I got desperate and called my uncle. He got me a job as a chef at his fancy restaurant. It paid more but my uncle had me working like a dog. The shifts were longer, my weekends were busier. Rose, the babysitter, was used more.

At this point in my life, I was so happy to have Elena as a best friend. She was wonderful. I think she spent more time at my house (helping me keep my family together) than at her own house. In the past few months she had become Eazy's number two fan in the bleachers (Anna being number one). Elena never missed a game, even though I began to miss more and more because of work. She made Effy's outfit for her ballet recitals. She also planned a surprise party for Anna's fifteenth birthday. Truthfully, I was quite jealous of my siblings. They spent more time with Elena than I did. She loved treating to them to ice cream or dinner. She never let me pay her back, so I often made her dinner or breakfast to make it even.

When I heard someone knocking on my bedroom door I put the covers over my head. I knew who it was… Anna. Effy and Eazy were at Big Mike's. I heard the doorknob twist and the door swing open.

"Damon! Wake up!" I heard her say. I wrapped the blanket around me a little bit tighter.

"Five more minutes, it's Saturday" I protested weakly

"Come on, we have a million things to do. Eazy's going to be back soon!" she exclaimed

I groaned and she sighed loudly.

"Fine, sleep a little bit more but I need help setting up the decorations for Eazy's birthday." She said before she walked out the door.

**Elena's POV, Monday**

It had been two months since the 'the incident' and each day was getting easier and easier. I have to admit that I never thought I would ever need therapy but it was helping. It pushed me to deal with my problems and talk about them instead of running away from them.

Right now, I'm in midst of a session with Dr. West, my therapist. She's a tall woman with a kind face and at the moment, she knows more about me than my diary.

"So, how do you feel today?" she begins. I lay on the reclining chair and stare up at the ceiling. I'm silent for the first few minutes still uncomfortable with the sharing my innermost thoughts with a stranger. Dr. West waits patiently knowing my behaviors far too well by now.

"Today is good… You know sometimes I think it was just a bad dream. Like if… I just wake up my parents are still going to be alive. Is that weird?"

She muffles a scoff. "You know ask me that a lot. Weird? Everyone deals with death and loss in their own way. Nothing is odd when it comes to coping."

I smile a bit but not out of happiness, just thoughtfulness.

She continues, "I think losing your parents so suddenly has to be hard for you to process. Time is your friend."

I stay quiet not knowing what else to say. I'm a bit nervous today, more than usual.

"Is there anything else you want tell me? You seem hesitant today" she says all knowingly.

"Well… something happened to me on Saturday." I whisper feeling a bit silly.

"Really, well this is a safe place Elena. We can discuss anything you'd like," she tells me.

I gulp. "Well it's nothing big… or maybe it is. I don't know. It's different I guess," I babble

"What happened?" she encourages when I pause.

"Well it wasn't exactly an event or anything. Just a feeling" I try to explain with incomprehensible sentences.

"A feeling?" she repeats. She often repeats things as if to make sure she heard it correctly.

"Yea, about a boy" I say and she smiles widely.

"I see… is this about Damon?" she questions. I freeze.

"How… did you know?" I ask.

"Well, he is a fairly dominant presence in your life. We do discuss him often."

I smile turning a couple shades red. "Then you know?" I question

"I only know what you tell me. So what is this new feeling?"

"I don't think it's new. I just think I've been too preoccupied to notice."

**Damon's POV, Saturday…**

The smell of coffee is what woke me up. The whisper in my ear tickled. The soft yet very familiar voice aroused me.

"Wake up, Damon. I have coffee." She whispered into my ear. I smiled with my eyes closed.

"I'm tired," I told her. I could hear the sound of a zipper so I opened my eyes to see what she was unzipping. It was her boots. She was taking them off.

"What are doing Elena?" I asked suspiciously. She smiled and lifted my blanket. The action made the cold air rush in, I grimaced in response. "Joining you," she responded as she crawled into my full sized bed. A big bed wouldn't make sense to share a room with my little brother.

I took her in with my arms wide open. She lay her head down on my chest. Her hair smelled delicious, it was the smell of her favorite shampoo and it quickly became my favorite. She lay in my arms noiselessly for a while. Then she laughed quietly after a few minutes

"Why are you laughing?" I asked

"Anna's gonna so pissed."

I laughed a little. "Why?"

"She sent me in here to get you out of bed." She said raising her head to look at me. I bit the inside of my cheek stop myself from kissing her. The effort on my part seemed unnoticed as she gently rubbed circles on my cheek.

"How are you doing today?" I asked out of habit.

"Good but today isn't about me. It's Eazy's birthday." She said with a gentle smile

I smiled back then I heard some loud knocking.

"Come in!" I yelled

Anna came rushing in and quickly analyzed our positions. "You guys! Get up!" she yelled a bit exasperated.

Elena started to get up but I pulled her back into bed. "Nuh-uh, stay," I said hoping she didn't hear the desperation in my voice. Elena looked at me then looked at Anna before anyone broke the silence.

Anna shook her head at both of us. "Ten minutes, that's it. I mean it," She said in a stern voice and walked out the door.

Both of us laughed quietly as we milked our ten minutes alone. Time we rarely had anymore. I wrapped both my arms around Elena, being greedy with my constant need to be around her. She laid her head on my chest again and I soaked in her scent as she lay there. I placed a soft kiss on her forehead, pushing my luck as far it would go.

"Ow," she exclaimed as she rubbed her head. I looked at her confused. She rubbed my chin with her hand in response.

"You need to shave. Your beard hurts," she joked.

I laughed and rubbed my face all over her face and neck. The action made her laugh uncontrollably. "Stop, now it tickles," she protested lightly.

I placed a kiss on her cheek when I stopped. "You're too much fun," I whispered in her ear. I swear I felt her shiver in my arms when I whispered. She quickly removed the blankets from her body and got up.

"Hey where are you going?" I asked. Elena was warm and soft in my bed. Now I just felt cold and rigid. She turned to face me as she put her shoes back on.

She had a big smile on her face as she joked, "To make breakfast, silly. Someone has to be responsible one."

I pulled her by the waist back into my bed. I liked her sleeping next to me. She lightly protested as she tried to wriggle herself out my arms.

"Elena, I've tasted your food. If anyone is making breakfast, then it should be me." I said in her ear. Her back was facing me so I didn't see her reaction. She stopped struggling and turned herself in my arms to face me after a moment.

"Fine, eggs over easy…"

"So they'll still be runny but not completely raw." I finished for her. She visited my apartment often enough for me to know most of her food preferences.

She kissed my forehead before she maneuvered her way out of my arms. Then she pulled me out of bed as I whined. I wrapped my arms around her waist and put my chin on her right shoulder. She didn't mind. She never minded my physical contact which was good since I couldn't keep my hand off of her. I just had to keep my hands off of certain parts of her body. She was my friend but I swear she picked that wonder woman costume on Halloween to push me over the edge.

Anna smiled as we finally emerged from the bedroom.

**Elena's POV, Monday…**

"There are a lot of things Damon makes me feel. When I'm in his arms, I feel safe. Like nothing else can touch me. When I'm talking to him, about anything, I feel happy."

"Why happy?" Dr. West asks. Hmm… I never expect her questions so I wait a moment before I answer trying to collect my thoughts.

"Well, I think half the time nobody understands me. They just smile and nod or giggle when I say something that sounds funny but is meant to be completely serious. When I met my old friend Matty, I thought I finally found my other half. Matty always understood me better than anyone else. I thought for a long time, that one day we would begin dating but something was always missing."

"What do you think that is?"

I stare at the ceiling some more. "It's hard to explain but the zsa zsa zsu is missing," I say stealing Caroline's line. Caroline was definitely going through some boy troubles at the moment. Somehow, she was stuck in love triangle with Klaus at one end and Tyler on the other. Tyler being the dependable good natured ex-boyfriend. Klaus being the unpredictable, passion-driven potential boyfriend.

"What is that?"

"It's the spark in a relationship."

"Do you feel you have that with Damon?"

I smile widely. "Damon is like having Matty with zsa zsa zsu on overdrive. On one hand, he gets me better than anyone. He knows when to push and when to hold back. He somehow understands me when I talk in circles. He also keeps very promise he makes. On other hand, I think it's hard to breathe when he gets too close. My heart always skips a beat whenever he touches me. Yet, I don't he has a clue what he does to me or my erratic heart."

I look up to find a smiling Dr. West. "Do you believe that your relationship with Damon will ever blossom?" she asks

I frown. "I don't know. At first, we were both bringing some heavy baggage into the relationship so we settled on friends. I'm not exactly sure if our time has passed."

"And if it hasn't? if somehow he still carrying a torch for you."

I smile at the thought. "I think I'm ready. I think I'm much better now but then I think about the future."

"And what do you see?"

"I don't know. I mean… I don't think we have a future."

She looks me at me pensively. She knows all about Damon. She's lived in this town all her life.

"Is that so bad?" she finally says. I can feel my eyebrows furrow and I wait for her to continue.

**Damon's POV, Saturday…**

Anna put Elena to work quickly as I started on breakfast. She was setting up the party outside in the community park. Apparently Jeremy was already there. The kid was starting to annoy me. He had big eyes for my sister and I wasn't a big fan.

He was saving the spot for us at the park. Elena and Anna packed some supplies and left in the kitchen. It gave me some time to think. My uncle's Christmas party was coming up soon. I had to go.

First of all, I was now working for him so it was now mandatory. Second of all, I was always got a sweet check. Anna called it my Christmas bonus. It was my aunt's doing since my uncle wasn't very fond of giveaways. The only catch is that I had to stay for the entire stuffy party. I usually took Anna but it was like pulling teeth.

She hated going but I didn't like going alone. I never took Eazy or Effy since no kids were allowed. It was adults only.

This year I was thinking I'd try a different approach. I was thinking of giving Anna a break this year and bringing Elena instead. The party was stuffy but the food was great. Everyone got dressed up and nice looking. It was a perfect non-date date. I could have a whole evening with her alone. I would obviously hog up all of her time and tell her how amazing she looked. That would be allowed since she would be all dressed up. Also, I could finally not look like a complete tired mess. There would also be soft music and dancing.

It would be incredible. Well at least in my head it was.

Food was ready when Anna and Elena came back from the park. Anna ate fast and wrapped some up for Jeremy. Elena stayed since Anna left us in charge of goodie bag making and cake baking.

Elena was washing her plate when I gained the courage to ask her to the Christmas party.

"Hey, what are you next weekend?" I started

"Um… Aunt Jenna is going out of town with Alaric. He's taking her on some romantic get away. She thinks he's going to pop the question."

"Do you think she'll say yes?"

Elena smiled widely. "I think she's madly in love with the guy she also calls her best friend."

I smiled in return. The words she chose sent butterflies in my stomach.

"Most of my weekend is free. Elijah just wants me to go some Christmas party. He wants me to act as his beard and get his family off his back."

My head spun a bit. "Which Christmas party?" I asked already knowing. No family would dare have a Christmas party on the first week of December. That was Salvatore territory.

"Your uncle's. Are you coming?" she said with a giant smile. A hopeful smile. My heart sank, I'd have to spend the entire night watching Elijah pretend to be with Elena.

I nodded my head with a frown.

"Is it that bad? Elijah said there would be good food," She said with a confused face

"It's kind of dull." I answered

She smiled a little. "Well save me a dance. I don't want the whole night to be dull."

I tried to smile but it was a wasted effort. I felt like a deflated balloon. I'd already planned our entire night and now it was reduced to a one simple dance.

"Who are you taking?" she asked still holding a smile.

Well, I'd already told Anna she didn't have to go this year, so her music teacher booked her for tournament that same weekend. The first name that popped into my head was Rose. I could tell she liked me, so she probably wouldn't say no.

"Rose," I answered

Elena's eyes widened. "O, sounds like fun."

**Elena's POV, Monday…**

"What do you mean?" I asked

"Well, you are very mature for your age but all in all you are fairly young. The future is the future. Let it be."

"I don't think it would that simple. Damon is… he's like. If I let myself feel too much for him, I might not ever want to leave this town. And… this might sound selfish but I think I'll regret it."

"I see. You've mentioned your aspirations to see the world and become a journalist. Have you signed up for the school's newspaper already?"

"Yeah, I've written a couple of stories for them. Alaric, the faculty supervisor, is letting me write my first editorial."

"I see. It's good that you have idea of what you want to be already."

"But Damon does too! He wants to be an architect. You should see his notebook. It's full of ideas. I look at them and think it's impossible to build something so complicated but then he takes me step by step through the math behind the structure. It's unfair!" I say with too much enthusiasm. I look down.

"You care for him a lot, Elena. It's okay to feel this way."

I wipe some tears from eyes. "I wish his dad could get it together. I wish Effy and Eazy weren't so young. I wish a lot of things. Like … I wish … I wish I wouldn't feel so guilty because… I love him."

I look up to see Dr. West. "Why would that make you feel guilty?" she asks confused.

"Because I can't have him. I can't take him. He can only be half mine."

"Why?"

"Because he belongs to his siblings wholly. I can't be so selfish. Plus what if he doesn't want me?"

"Are you also afraid of rejection?"

"In a way… yes. I haven't seen him date anyone since the incident but I think that's my fault. He lost his job cause of me, so now he doesn't have time for anything but work."

"What if he's just waiting for you?"

"He's not. He's taking someone on a date this weekend."

"Have you guys discussed your possibilities?"

I paused for a moment. "We haven't but I hardly knew I was in love with him until this past Saturday. I thought we were fine as friends but then he told me about his date with rose. And I became jealous then the more time passed the more I realized what I felt for him"

**Damon's POV, Saturday…**

I wasn't very gentle with mixing the cake batter as Elena made the goody bags. I needed to take out some extra energy.

I had no reason to be jealous. Nothing was going to happen between Elijah and Elena but the thought still killed me. Elena solemnly discussed her plans after high school but I knew she wanted to travel the world. She constantly read online articles and made comments like, "Syria starts a civil war and CNN's headline is whether Robert Pattinson will break up with Kristen Stewart. Psh!"

I wouldn't have her forever. She had bigger plans than to stay in a small town with me. She was going to be some hardcore journalist one day and I would be here. That's why I felt the need to drink in every minute I still had with her. Before she left to start her life.

I looked up from my mixing to find her staring at me from the dining room table. She looked down as soon as I spotted her. She had been staring at me? Odd… she didn't do that. I was the one who constantly stole glances at her.

**Elena's POV, Monday…**

"I don't know the exact moment it happened but suddenly I knew. I think I always knew but I couldn't let myself feel it. We're just at the park, celebrating his brother's birthday and the realization hit me. I was in love with him. He was kind and strong and loving and caring but he was also unpredictable and spontaneous and incredible. I don't think I ever had a chance not to fall in love with him."

Dr. West paused. Something she never did. "So what now?" she asked

"I don't know. What do you think I should do?"

"I think you should do what you want to do."

"I don't know what I want to do. Tell me what to do."

"I can't tell you what to do but you know what you want."

"I don't think I do."

"You want to try. I can see you've made a lot of process. You've become more stable and strong and not entirely because of me. It's also because of him. If you're asking me if you are ready, I can only guess that you are."

"Try?" I ask

"Try, keep your life moving. Grow, make mistakes, fall in love, live life. Or one day you might look back and regret not taking that chance."

I gulped and Dr. West looked at her watch.

"Well same time next week?" she asked rhetorically. I walked out of her room silently and waited outside for my ride. Jeremy usually picked me upon time, but I got text from him.

_Anna's big out of town tournament recital is this weekend. I was helping her practice. Running late._

I sighed. Jeremy was definitely head over heels for Anna. The only thing stopping him was his fear of Damon. I had a big feeling Anna also had a thing for Jeremy but I was just assuming since they spent a lot of their time together.

When he finally picked me up, I got in the car silently.

"So was it a good day?" he asked when he pulled out of the parking lot.

"Umm… well… it was certainly interesting."

"Learn anything new?"

"Yup, you should ask out Anna 'cause we're young and if we don't do what we want now then we might regret later."

My brother blushed. "I asked her out today. That's why I was late."

* * *

**So I rewrote this chapter many times. I finally settled on this one to post. This version is kind of a Frankenstein (the monster), since I pieced all my versions together to make it. Sadly, I wasn't able to include a scene in this chapter. In two out of the five versions, Damon had a flashback of Halloween. It was unnecessary to place in this chapter but I still liked it. So I'm posting it as a mini chapter. It's kind of repetitive because it was written for this chapter but I hope you still like it. **

* * *

**Damon's POV, Halloween**

It's been difficult keeping this secret from Elena but I will tell her soon, I promise. Then again, how do you approach your best friend and tell her, "hey, thanks for helping me plan Anna's 15th birthday party… o yea and in case you haven't noticed I'm madly in love with you." It was driving me insane but a few weeks after the incident we had both landed in the friend zone, even though I desperately wanted out.

Not to mention that many things weren't working out in my favor lately. The owner of the grill hadn't taken my comment to his only son very lightly. Calling snooty Trevor a "pain in the ass" wasn't the brightest idea I ever had. I found a job that same week but it was working for my Uncle. Caroline's Dad wouldn't get allow any of his businesses to hire me, since I broke his daughter's heart. What could I say, Caroline was his only child and she was definitely a daddy's girl. Mrs. Forbes had a soft spot for my family, but she was the sheriff not a business owner.

Mr. Michaelson hadn't been very fond of me either. Kicking the crap out of his sons didn't help the situation. So I had to ask (almost beg) for a job from my Uncle. The town was practically own by the three families. I had no choice. That meant constantly being under my uncle's thumb. I got hired as a new cook at a fancy restaurant, Anastasia's, he owned on the outskirts of town. The only upside was that it paid me more.

Now, it was Saturday and I had worked the morning shift. When I got home the house was completely empty. All of my siblings were at Elena's home. She was taking them trick or treating around her neighborhood. I crashed on my sofa, extremely exhausted from the day. I ended up taking a nap before I realized it.

I woke up to the sound of the door bell ringing. I got up to answer it, it was Effy and Eazy.

Effy was Supergirl. Elena had taken her shopping since my work schedule had somehow become overbearing. It was practically my entire life now. But Elena was so good to me. She was amazing and I thanked each day she was in my life. She was always there when I needed her.

Eazy was most definitely the incredible hulk in all that green paint.

"Hey guys, where's Anna?" I asked.

"We ran too fast!" Effy explained when she showed me her bag of goodies.

Eazy raised his bag as well. "She's still climbing the stairs with Elena."

I caught myself straightening my clothes. Elena always looked amazing when I saw her. I think I still had flour on my cheek from work; I should have taken a shower as soon as I got home.

"Did you guys have fun?" I asked as I saw Anna around the corner. She was dressed as Batgirl. She looked way more conservative than most of the girls but she still had a small black skirt and tall black boots. I grimaced. My little sister should have gone as a nun.

Somewhere the along the line, she had become good friends with Elena's brother. I didn't like him very much. He was a former (I hope) weed addict and a careless drinker. The only reason I allowed him to continue to hanging out with my sister was the fact that he was Elena's brother, so he was lucky.

He had on a pair of jeans and a black t-shirt with a batman logo on it. I found that uncomfortable since they looked like a couple. Elena came up next. I knew she was going to be wonder woman for Halloween but god …. She looked amazing. The costume was made for her body and practically painted on. Effy dragged me inside before anyone caught me gawking. Elena was texting on her way up the stairs.

In my extremely bias opinion, she put Lynda Carter to shame. Even as tired as I was from work, my body still reacted the minute she walked through my door.

Then it wasn't just her face and her body that I was (very) attracted to, it was everything. It was the way she came over, even when I didn't call but still needed her. It was the way she didn't push me when all I wanted was a moment of silence. Or the way she did push me when I was way too stubborn to see the bigger picture. It was that look of understanding she gave me when I thought no one else could fathom the thoughts passing through my head. Then it was way she did things when she thought no one else was looking or noticing. Like sharing lunch with me, when she knew I hadn't packed any.

It was easier to stop fighting Elena's entrance into my life but I knew that with each step she took that it would be that much harder to let her go. So I was going to spend enough time with her as possible

I was looking over the candy, when the trio walked in. I peeked up to look at Elena and immediately wanted her. I swear she must have worn that outfit to torture me. Everything about her was breathtaking but she hardly seemed to notice my reaction. There was some comic book theme to this Halloween. I never dreamed that comic books could be this stimulating.

"Hey Damon!" Anna greeted still walking next to Jeremy. Jeremy just waved since he was always nervous around me. I liked it that way. Nervous was a good feeling for him to have.

I waved, afraid my voice might give me away. Elena was still texting. Who was she texting so intently? She wasn't seeing anyone I hope. Elena hadn't been dating anyone since the incident. That was god-sent. I wouldn't be able to stand it if she did. And I… was in a dry spell. A long, dragging dry spell that wanted to end but was too stubborn to have anyone but Elena.

"Damon, Reese's pieces!" Effy yelled almost jumping. Elena suddenly looked up with a smile.

"Hey," I almost croaked.

"How was your day?" she asked with a wide smile.

At the moment it was a slow torture. "Good, you have any more plans for tonight?" I asked since I was way too interested in the happenings of her life.

"Yea, Caroline has a party. Wanna come? Anna and Jer aren't up for it."

Hm… after a grueling shift and a rough day, did I want to spend the rest of the night with people that didn't like me? If Elena was there (especially with that outfit) then yes, definitely.

"Sure," I said with a giant smile. She smiled back before she looked me over.

"She wants everyone in a costume," she said and suddenly made her way into my bedroom. I followed her. She was too accustomed to my apartment now. Somehow, she never got to get see Damon Senior a second time. I thought that was great luck, I didn't need him scaring her off.

She was rummaging through my closet while I was looking at my bed. This was highly unfair, to have her so close to my bed looking so damn hot!

When she came out of my closet she had an outfit picked out for me. It looked like a suit.

"Who am I gonna be?" I asked before she began looking through my shirts.

"You'll see," she teased, "Take off your shirt."

I did as she said. This was getting to be highly unfair. I was half naked with the woman of my dreams in my bedroom and I was absolutely sure nothing was going to happen. My siblings were just outside what did I expect?

When she turned around with one blue shirt in her hands, her face turned slightly red. I smiled in response. That reaction made my entire day. She handed me the blue shirt and walked to my door.

"Umm… I should give you some privacy," she said before she walked out.

…

When I walked out, Elena handed me a pair of glasses.

"Anna says you use them to read," She told me and I put them on. Eazy and Effy looked at me strangely.

"Damon, who are you supposed to be?" Eazy wondered. Elena started to undo my shirt buttons. Unfair, unfair, unfair.

"Superman!" Effy yelled when Elena displayed the blue shirt underneath.

Elena giggled. "Well Clark Kent, but yeah Superman."

Anna looked at her with a giant smile. "Elena you're brilliant. I almost forgot about that shirt he had."

Elena smiled. Jeremy looked at both of us in an amusing way.

"Hey, you know Superman and Wonder woman are a couple in some comic books" Jeremy said.

* * *

**Sorry if this chapter was late and took me forever. I'm not entirely in love with it but I needed to post this chapter before too much time had passed. I hope chapter 20 won't be so hard to write. I'm thinking it will be entirely in Damon's POV and will start at the Christmas party. Again super sorry. I get stuck on late chapters. **


	20. Boy meets Brother

**Yea for faster updates!**

**Damon POV, the day of the Christmas party, the first Saturday in December…**

This morning feels robotic. Wake up, take shower, make breakfast, eat breakfast. I'm like a slow-paced turtle and everything else is lighting speed. Anna is rushing to pack for her tournament, she's staying overnight at a hotel with the rest of the band.

"Damon, I can't find my…"

"In the closet, top shelf"

Effy is running around refusing to get fully dressed.

"Catch me Damon! Catch me!" she says as she runs through the living room.

"Damon, how about my…." Anna interrupts as she reenters the living room.

"In the kitchen, you were practicing there last night," I answer.

Eazy keeps himself entertained in front of the TV.

"Eazy, you need to take a shower. Too much TV will rot your brain."

"Aw but it's SpongeBob," he answers

"And SpongeBob will still be there tomorrow," I answer when I finally catch a laughing Effy.

Eazy gets up grumpy but takes a shower nonetheless.

Everyone eats. Everything's packed. It's 10:40. Anna needs to be at school by eleven for the bus. Drive. Say goodbye. Eazy has a basketball game at eleven thirty. He's bugging that we're gonna be late and he won't have time to warm up. I tell him not to worry.

Effy is singing Old McDonald at the top of her lungs. After the dog barks, the cow moos, and the chickens cluck, she stops. Then the wheels on the bus go round and round. Eazy covers his ears because he's annoyed. I focus on my next task.

Community Gym. Eazy runs in. Effy is on my shoulders. Find a seat. Sit down. Suddenly everything stops.

I see her. She's here. I knew she would be here, she never misses a game. She lifts Effy from my shoulders.

"Ewena!"

Breathe, everything slows down. Speak, talk, do something! I tell myself.

"Hey Damon, how was your morning?" she asks

I smile. "Same as always," I say.

She smiles. World halts, planets crash, yup just a regular morning.

…

Some supernatural patience. It's not normal. Effy can ask a million questions but Elena doesn't seem to mind.

I take Effy on my own lap to give Elena a breather.

We all cheer 'Go Eazy!' Half time. Losing. Eazy looks sad. Elena cheers louder. Eazy looks embarrassed but in a good way. I think he has a small crush on her. At least he gets to spend more time with her than me.

Half time over. Fourth quarter. Ten seconds on the clock. Game tied. Pass to Jeff. Pass to Artie. Pass to Eazy. Eazy shoots. Buzzer goes off. Eazy scores. Elena shouts. Effy screams.

…

We're waiting for Jeremy in the parking lot when Elena looks up at me. Effy and Eazy are chasing each other. I let it be. They're kids and running around is what they do.

"I always have fun when I come to these games," Elena tells me.

"Even with Effy asking a million questions? Ewena, why is the sky blue? Ewena, why do cows have spots? Ewena, Ewena," I joke.

She laughs. It's contagious, so I laugh.

"Are they staying at big Mike's tonight?" she asks motioning to my brother and sister.

"Yeah, Rose is coming with me." I answer almost with a frown. She looks away. Her smile is gone. I wonder if taking Rose bothers her. Should I tell her I wanted to take her all along?

Too late, Jeremy drives up next to us. Elena says goodbye to me then to the kiddies. Two seconds later she emerges from the car again. She has a big grin on her face. She looks like she wants to tell me something.

"Um, Jeremy has to tell you something." She says almost laughing.

"Okay, what is it?" I ask

She giggles. "Just talk to him."

She watches Effy and Eazy while I get into the car. Before I close the door she stops me and whispers in my ear, "Promise me something."

"Anything" I whisper back.

"Promise to be nice."

I smile, "Aren't I always?" I joke. Though, I could be nicer to her brother.

…

Jeremy looks nervous and angst-y. I smile awkwardly. I've never spent any real time with him.

"So, you have something to tell me?" I ask a bit annoyed. Several minutes have already passed.

Jeremy fiddles with his fingers but nods his head.

"Well spit it out. I don't have all day," I push.

He nods his head again. He lets out a breath of air and tries to relax. I laugh quietly at his nervousness. Then it hits me. I know what he wants to say.

"I… I …" he tries to choke out.

I grow angry.

"My answer is no," I answer without truly thinking about it. It just came out. It's in my nature. Written in my DNA. Scary older brother.

"I just want a chance."

"No"

"I would never hurt her."

I look at Jeremy intently hoping to strike some fear in him. He looks at me. His hands are shaking but his eyes stay on mind. He's trying to look tough.

"My answer is no and that won't change," I say before I leave the car. Elena is chasing after Eazy while giving Effy a piggy back ride.

She stops when she notices me.

"Hey, finished already?" she says with a big smile. It's hopeful. The promise I made, O SHIT. I have half a mind to rush back into that car.

Jeremy is Elena's brother. Why couldn't I recall that a second ago?

I could have been nicer but my mind doesn't change. He can't date my sister.

"Yeah, I don't think it's a good idea," I say.

Her smile disappears and she puts Effy down.

"Why?" she pleads.

"Jeremy isn't the kind of person I want dating my sister," I respond hoping she can understand.

"He's my brother Damon. He really, really likes your sister," she says with her voice cracking. Heart breaks slightly.

"No, he's not going to date her. She wouldn't date him anyway," I tell her softly but the choice of words sounds harsh.

Her eyes widened and she gets in her car without another word.

Shit, crap. Fuck my life!

….

Don't freak. Don't freak. The weird pain in my chest will go away. Breathe. Start over.

Drive. Effy is quiet. She wants to know why Elena didn't say bye. I tell her that Elena was in a rush. Effy doesn't understand. Eazy is not looking at me. He knows I did something wrong.

Get home. Eazy takes another shower. Effy plays with her toys. She wants to know where Elena is. I tell her Big Mike is coming soon. It cheers her up and I help pack her an overnight bag.

I start to dress for the Christmas party. My hand is shaking slightly. Nerves. It reminds me of Jeremy. I give Elena a call. No answer. No problem I think. She loses her phone all the time. Breathe. Remember to breathe. She's not ignoring you.

A bump in the road. A disagreement. Nothing major, I hope.

Big Mike comes over. Effy squeals. Eazy doesn't. He looks at me meaningfully before he leaves. Crap! If the eight-year old thinks I messed up then it must be true.

Keep going. Did my phone just blink? I have a text. Elena?

Nope. Rose.

_Can't wait for tonight ;)_

I can. I don't think I'll even get my one dance.

…

Rose arrived right on time. Her pixie hair is flared. Her dress is purple. I tell her she looks pretty. She tells me I look handsome. We walk into the Salvatore mansion unnoticed.

"My god, this place is huge," she says

"Yea, it's been in our family for five generations," I say to pass the time. A server walks by and I grab a champagne glass from his tray.

"We can drink here?" she asks. She's seventeen. She's surprised.

I smile to one side and nod. I let her have my champagne and grab another for myself. I down it and grab another.

"Woah, you might get sick if you drink too fast," she comments.

I breathe out loudly. "I need a little help to get through the day."

"O, I heard you don't get along with your Uncle."

I down the next glass. "And rumors never lie" I respond. Though I wasn't drinking for my uncle. He stayed in the den most of the night, smoking cigars with some poker buddies like Bill Forbes or Michael Michaelson. This party was mainly for my Aunt's sake.

…

I keep looking at the front door, hoping to see her. Elena. No such luck an hour into the party. Rose is good at small talk, so don't have to contribute much to any conversation we enter with other people.

My Aunt approaches us a second later. Her dress is burgundy. Her hair and skin is flawless. One of those woman who ages amazingly.

"Damon," she says with a smile, "I didn't see you come in. Have you forgotten you have an Aunt?"

I shake my head with a smile. "Of course not, how could I ever forget you?" I tease.

She looks at Rose with a peculiar look.

"Is this the infamous Elena?" she asks. I immediately frown.

"This my friend, Rose." I respond. Rose sticks out her hand. "Nice to meet you Mrs. Salvatore."

"Pity, I don't get to see the infamous Elena but you my dear are quite a jewel yourself."

"Thank you. Elena is actually arriving with Michaelson." Rose comments. She can be quite chatty.

"O, I see. You've gone your separate ways?" she asks me.

I nod. I didn't want to comment any further. She gets the hint.

"Well, enjoy the rest of the party," she says before she leaves. Another half an hour passes. Rose and I are sitting on a couch talking to one of my distant cousins, Hugo. I have no idea what the conversation is about. I'm lost in my head.

Then suddenly I see every eye in the room gravitate to the front door. I follow the stare. The Michaelson brothers and Katherine.

Katherine has Tyler on her right hand. Well that's new? But then I didn't really follow the rumor mill at school. I had more important things to think about then who was fucking who.

Behind them are Klaus and Caroline. Caroline is shooting daggers toward Katherine. Klaus is holding tight to Caroline. After them is Elijah with Elena in tow. Both with big smiles. If Elena wasn't at my house then she most likely with Elijah. Rarely, she had plans with Matty since he lived so far away.

Caroline and Katherine both opted for attention grabbing fire engine red dresses. Elena snuck behind with a dark blue sleeveless floor length dress. She's breathtaking.

"Damon?" I heard someone say. Elijah whispers in her ear, Elena laughs wholeheartedly. What did he say to her?

"Damon?" I heard someone repeat.

"Hm?" I answer

"What do you think?"

"About what?"

"Hugo says that incubation temperature determines the sex of a turtle hatchling. Isn't that amazing?" she says with a side smile. I try to control my face but really what the fuck!? How on earth did we land on this conversation?

"Sounds interesting but um… I'm gonna go say hi to Elena" I answer.

Rose smiles, "I'll come, nice to have met you Hugo."

Hugo smiles and we leave.

…

"Thank god! I was drowning in that conversation," Rose admits, "And you left me hanging."

"O sorry, I didn't get the hint."

Rose shrugs and wraps her arm around mine.

"No harm done, except I know way too much about turtle mating habits now. You have an interesting set of relatives."

I spot Elena just then. She has her arm wrapped around Elijah's arm. They're both talking to Stefan and my Aunt.

…

"Damon, I haven't seen you all day" Stefan says when I join the conversation.

"He's being quite introverted today. It's rather unusual for him," my Aunt comments.

"The thing with Damon is that no matter how well you know him, he always manages to surprise you," Elena adds with a straight face.

The tension between us could be cut with a knife.

One of the servers announces dinner. We all make our way toward dining rom. I tug on Elena before she can get away. I tug Elijah consequently since she has her arm wrapped around him.

"Can I talk to you alone?" I whisper to her.

"I think you've made yourself clear." She stage whispers.

"This isn't the time Damon" Elijah adds. I give him a mean glare.

A yell comes from the dining room table. We all rush to see the source.

When we arrive we see that Caroline and Katherine are each other's throats, yelling at each other.

"Homewrecker!" Caroline yells

"It's not my fault your boyfriends prefer me!"

"Nice to see that you like my leftovers!"

"Maybe you should try keeping a boyfriend! Since they always come running for me!"

"You can have my sloppy seconds!"

I grab Elena while everyone is entertained.

She struggles against my grip a bit. I lead her upstairs. Stefan's room.

"Elena, seriously we need to talk," I tell her when we get inside.

"About what? The fact that you think my brother isn't good enough to date your sister."

"He's a weed addict. He also gets drunk almost every weekend with that Vicki girl! Of course I don't want him near her!"

She looks me like if she's in pain. "Not with Anna. With her, he's happy. With her, he wants to be better. You don't know him like I do Damon. He's crazy about her Damon. Like head over heels, can't stop talking about her for one second crazy about her."

I look at her dumbfounded. "I don't trust him with her."

"Well then trust me. You asked me once what I thought about Will. I didn't know the guy well but Jeremy I know. Inside out, outside in. I know him."

I gulp. "She got hurt before."

"Damon… Anna's like my sister, too. If Jeremy hurt her, I promise I will personally kick his ass."

I smiled at her comment, then I brush back a strand of her hair.

"Fine but for the record I'm holding you to your promise."

She smiles widely, beautifully.

I kiss her forehead and wrap her in a hug. Fight over. Lungs working again.

I can't stop the next words from spilling out of my mouth. "I love you."

I feel her stiffen. I can't see her face. World halts planets crash, I still can't help but put my foot in my mouth.

I can't take it back, I can't rewind time. Did she even hear me? It was difficult enough to say it the first time around. Door swings open. Both of us look to see.

Elijah.

"There you are. Dinner is almost ready," he says then pauses, "Did I interrupt something?"

…

The rest of the night went by like a blur. Dinner was nice. Food was good.

I look at her constantly. She talks to everyone but me. Nevertheless we're on opposite sides of the table. I'd have to yell for her to hear me.

Uncle talks business. Aunt makes jokes to lighten the mood. Stefan stares at Elena. Can't blame him, she looks incredible in that dress.

People begin to disperse for dancing. Rose is a dancer, so we don't leave the dance floor. Her voice falls back with the background noise. I know it's there but I am not paying attention. I'm looking for Elena.

She's doesn't dance right away. She's busy talking and/or laughing. Elijah sticks by her the entire night. If I didn't know any better, I'd think they were dating.

Finally, he takes her to the dance floor. I have one dance with her. I have to pick my time right. If I take her now, then I waste it before the night ends. Last dance. I'll take her last dance.

For a while it seems like she's dancing with everyone. One dance with Tyler. One dance with Klaus. One dance with Hugo. Where hell is Elijah?

I wait my turn peaking over Rose's shoulder.

Elijah interrupts my dance with Rose. Says he'd like to cut in for the last dance. I make my way to Elena. She's dancing with one of my thirteen year old cousins. She seems happy.

I'm about to ask Elena when my Aunt blocks me. She's talking. I'm not listening. Stefan approaches Elena. I lose my only dance.

I start to pay attention to my Aunt. She wants all of us over for Christmas. I nod my head, too glum to say anything else.

Then I notice Elena, with her arms wrapped around Stefan. She's looking at me specifically.

She smiles. World halts. Planets crash.

…

At the end of the party, my Aunt hands me the Christmas bonus. She says to buy everyone something nice. I promise.

I miss Elena leaving so I just drive Rose to my apartment since her car was there. She gets out of the car slowly when I open the door.

"This wasn't a date was it?" she asks pensively when she gets out.

I shake my head.

"I know it isn't any of my business but it was pretty damn obvious that you wanted to be with Elena the entire night."

"Damn obvious?"

"Yeah, I thought I was in the way of you jumping her more than half the night," she jokes.

I look down. "Sorry about that. I should have never taken you and put you through that."

She shrugs, "No worries. I got a free meal and a chance to wear a pretty dress with a handsome guy."

I smile at her response. "I'll see you Monday?"

She nods and kisses my cheek. "Yup, and FYI Elena was looking at you the entire night too."

I smile at the thought and Rose takes off.

…

I was getting my dream started as I climbed up the three flights of stairs. I have to rub my eyes when I see Elena leaning on my apartment door. Was she really there?

"Took you long enough," she says with a small smile. She's here? Why?

"I didn't know you were waiting," I answer as I put my wild daydreams to rest. They're getting borderline inappropriate.

"You gonna open the door?" she asks and I am brought back to life. I approach the door and open it widely as I turned the lights on.

Home alone.

She walks inside slowly as if checking if anyone else was there. I walk into the kitchen and take off my jacket. I need a drink of water and maybe a splash on my face.

"How'd you like party?" I ask as I pour a glass of water. She takes off her heels and a wave of relaxation crosses her face. She makes her way towards me as she places her shoes by the door.

"Did you mean it?" she asks suddenly. I am near the fridge, she is several feet away but still in the kitchen.

I try to play dumb. "Mean what?"

"That you… that you love me?" she says almost in whisper maybe afraid she heard it wrong.

I gulp. Do or die. Sink or swim. Should I?

"Elena, I'm madly wholly and incredibly love with you." I confess. The last breath I took was too big. I breathe in again to make my lungs whole. I swallow thickly when she doesn't say anything back.

A tear suddenly comes down her face. "Why are you crying?" I ask as I come up to her and wipe the tear from her cheek.

"Because I'm happy," she answers.

In the next moment, she timidly put her arms around my neck and tippy toes to kiss my lips gently. She's slow and lingering but I'm not as patient as her. I cupped her jaw and bring her closer to me. I'm too desperate for her to keep at her pace. My kiss is hungry. Two months and some days too long for anything slow and gentle. She doesn't seem to mind as I place her back on the fridge. She forms herself to my body pulling at my shirt so I that could be closer.

We're practically glued together at this point. Her movements say she's nowhere near finished with me. I tilt her head to gain better access to her neck. I make a trail of kisses at the edge of her jawline.

"Too tall," she gasps as place my hand on one of her breasts.

"Huh?" I ask not knowing how to form words. I don't get it. I'm preoccupied moment. She moans as I nip at her ear.

"You're too tall," She clarifies and I grab her by the waist to place her on the counter. Problem solved.

"Better?" I ask

She nods with her eyes closed as I return to her mouth. She tastes like chocolate and coffee from the tiramisu she had. I push her dress back on her long legs so that could fit between her legs. She entwines her fingers in my hair. Her hands can't stay in one place. They make their way down to my shirt. She starts to unbutton. She's not very careful and two buttons get lost. I don't give a fuck. For this moment, she could rip this shirt to shreds.

Then suddenly I stop. "Elena?"

She doesn't listen at first and manages to roll my shirt off my shoulders not that I was fighting it.

"Elena?" I say intertwining our fingers and holding her back for a second. I see her perfectly now. Eyes dazed, lips swollen, sort of pouty because I made her stop.

"Yes?" she asks focused on my chest rather than my face. It makes me want to continue but I just want to make sure.

"If we go any further, I might not be able stop," I say a bit out of breath.

Her eyes suddenly look at my face, she smiles slyly.

"I don't want to stop," she says and I let go of her hands as she wraps her legs around my waist.

"Bed," she whispers before she continues to kiss me. I didn't need to be told twice. I pick her up and take her to my room.

…

"Thank you," I whisper when she's wrapped naked in my arms. Her breaths are deep, her skin glistens. This moment is perfect.

She giggles. "You're welcome."

"I don't think I'll ever be happier than I am now."

She trails a finger down my face and places a soft kiss on my forehead.

"I love you Damon. I'm knees shaking, butterfly making, completely and utterly in love with you," she whispers.

Scratch that now I was happier than I could ever be.

**This fic is T and will stay T. **


	21. Girl meets Morning After

**Elena's POV… **

Champion of my own mind. Ruler of my own body. Twenty foot wall as shield. Protected from the world and all its trials.

Now with his arms wrapped tightly around me, I realize that he broke every barrier I had. He left me bare and exposed without anything to hide behind. Yet, when my walls came tumbling down I never even tried to save them. Truthfully, I didn't even know they hit the ground.

We fell asleep in each other's arms and I woke up with my head cradled in his chest. His deep breaths told me he was still asleep. The slight smile on lips told me he was dreaming. He looked so peaceful in this state of rest. Like a simple boy with simple dreams, but no one in their right mind could say Damon was simple man. Damon was something else entirely.

The moment he told me he loved me I couldn't find the words to reply. The feelings that coursed through my veins were too overwhelming for me to fight. Yet, as the night grew late I started to doubt my ears. What if I imagined the words? What if he never meant it? So when Elijah dropped me off at Damon's apartment, I ran straight up the stairs.

I had to know the truth. The second time he told me he loved me. My heart jumped into my throat. I could feel the tears falling down my cheeks. I was in a phase of complete euphoria. The world seemed stop. I approached him carefully so that he could know my every intention. I kissed him chastely on the lips and he returned with more tenacity.

My memories of last night vary. Some memories are clear as day. The in other moments I can only remember the feeling of racing to top of a climax and relentlessly being brought down from the edge as he tried to prolong every moment. What started off with his impatience ended in my impatience to have him. He didn't want to waste a kiss. He wanted every moment to last, as if he was afraid this would be his only night so he had to savor everything. Like a thirsty man having his first drink of water and never wanting to forget the first sip. So he forces himself to have control. Nevertheless, my impatience didn't tarnish the night, it only obliged me to relish the moment of utter bliss even more.

As I lay there on his bed, I think of every moment we've shared. We were both headstrong people. We had strong values and opinions that we stood solidly behind. That caused us to argue from time to time. Yet, I'd rather be screaming his name, slamming doors in his face and saying words we don't mean because somehow I knew that our relationship wasn't bad. There were only two reasons we fought. Reason one: The other was acting like idiot so the normal one had to step in. Damon wasn't afraid to hurt my feelings when he knew I wasn't acting as I should. I wasn't afraid to call him out when he was acting like a total douche. We knew each other's limits better than we knew our own.

Reason two: we were crazy about each other. This revelation only came moments before. It explained a lot of our hasty fights. I think to some extent, that the feelings that we had for each other consumed us when we didn't act on them. Maybe even frustrated with the lack of time we actually spent together.

Then we weren't always fighting. I think most of the time we were laughing, joking and teasing each other. Fixated on the touches we allowed each other as friends and pushing the boundaries at every chance that developed.

I traced his jaw with my index finger and his cheek with my thumb as I thought about all the times I wanted to take hold of him and kiss him. He subconsciously leaned into my hand with eyes still closed and his breath still even. Even in this unconscious state he could make me smile.

I leaned forward to kiss him on the cheek and then maneuver my way out of the bed. It was still fairly early and he had work in the afternoon, so I decided not to wake him. My first move out of the bed was unsuccessful. His arms wrapped around me tighter. I turned to see if I had accidently woken him up.

He was still asleep. I was just the teddy bear he didn't want to let go. I tried again and he fought gently against it but released me after some tugs. Maybe I should have stayed in bed but my mouth felt dry and I was borderline starving. I would be back soon.

I looked at my clothes on the floor. I didn't want to wear the floor-length dress again but I didn't want to walk around without any clothes. I grabbed his button-up shirt instead and a clean pair of his boxers. I wasn't sure Anna's clothes would fit me. She was quite small.

On my way out of the bedroom, I saw my phone blinking. 1 missed call from Jeremy. Then three text messages.

_Hey are you alive? Just wanna know_

_Still worried. Text back_

_Called Elijah…_

Yeah, Jeremy wasn't Damon's number one fan at the moment. Plus, he was my brother it must have been awkward typing "called Elijah dot, dot, dot". I left the text messages unanswered. Jeremy knew where I was.

I walked in the kitchen knowing exactly where everything was. I spent way too much time at Damon's house. I was aiming for the bowls on the top shelf when I heard the front door open. I don't remember Damon locking it last night. Anna was out of town. Big Mike wasn't due until noon. I could only guess it was complete and dangerous stranger. I quickly grabbed a big cutting knife as I saw the front door swing open.

It was Damon Senior.

He looked at me strangely, as I held the knife in my hands tightly. I thought about yelling for Damon but I don't believe this man is dangerous. He just looks tired and well… dirty. He approaches me slowly as if he's trying not to scare me.

"Have I met you before?" he asks in voice I can only describe as well-breed.

I gulp and slowly lower my knife. "Once, a long time ago"

"Don't put down that knife," he whispers as he enters the little kitchen. The place feels much smaller with him in it.

"Why?" I ask afraid of the answer. Did I need to protect myself from this man?

He closes the proximity between us. Like Damon he seems unafraid of closeness. He reaches for my hand with the knife and grips my wrist aggressively. With my wrist gripped tightly, he helps me point the knife at his chest where his heart should be.

"Do it. Finish the job, I'm already dead," he tells me a bit infuriated.

I try to pull the knife away but his grip on my wrist is too strong.

"No!" I cry as look him straight in his emerald eyes. I can't find the resemblance between him and his son.

"End my misery. Relief me from this world I can't do it to myself… not for my son's sake."

I pull harder on the knife to remove the point from his chest. He struggles to keep me still as I squirm.

"Between the ribs into the heart," he whispers to me. I stop struggling for a moment, horrified at what he wants me to do.

"No!" I cry louder. Then my mind suddenly has an epiphany. I don't have to pull the knife away from his chest. I'm the one holding the knife not him. I let go and the knife drops to the floor. It slices my shin on the way down.

I hear the sound of footsteps from the bedrooms. Damon Senior pulls me by the hand so that his face is near mine.

"Why must you be so cruel?!" he tells me with mad tears rushing down his cheeks. I tell myself not to cry or yell. This man will not scare me or intimidate me for refusing to plunge a knife through his chest. I try to pull myself from his grip.

"DAD! Let go of her now!" I hear my Damon yell.

Damon Senior turns around to see his son livid. He quickly lets go of my hand. I rub it until the feeling returns. It hurts like hell when I regain sensation.

Damon Senior looks mortified as he looks at his son.

"I'm sorry Damon. I didn't mean to," he tells his son.

Damon quickly makes his way to me and pushes his dad to the side.

"Are you okay?" he asks with a face that looks so worried I can see his eyes start to gloss and his lips start to quiver.

I look at Damon Senior who has widened eyes and trembling hands. He was about to break down. I can't let that happen.

"I'm fine. Damon Senior just wanted some food," I lie

Damon gulps and looks at his father whose is now holding on to counter for support.

"Take a shower, Dad. Breakfast will be ready when you get out," Damon says like father more than a son.

Damon Senior nods and leaves the room.

Damon turns to me again. He examines my face in haste, lifting my hair for evidence. I place my bruising wrist behind me. He notices quickly and pulls it forward. He picks it up carefully but it's already starting to sting so I wince. He places a soft kiss on it.

"I'm sorry Elena," he says in a whisper. I brush his hair back calmly with my better hand.

"I'm fine Damon. Can I have breakfast too?" I ask to lighten the mood.

"You're gonna stay?" he asks disbelievingly

"I was planning to but I can leave if you want me to," I say

He grabs my face and kisses me gently on the lips. "He'll behave I promise. I won't let him hurt you, I swear."

I nod my head and kiss him again. "Don't forget to make my eggs runny," I whisper.

"I could never forget a single thing about you Elena" he says back and kiss me on the forehead.

He quickly starts taking out some dishes and I step aside. That's when I felt the sting on my shin. I look down to see the damage. There's a lot of blood, Damon notices the same thing.

"I've got a first aid kit," he rushes to say and speeds out of the room.

I walk over to the nearest chair and sit. He comes back quickly and I hear the sound of the showerhead.

"What happened?" he asks as he takes out the antiseptic wipes.

"I dropped a knife on myself," I answer truthfully while leaving some details out. I grimace as the cut gets disinfected. Then he places a Band-Aid over it.

"You would tell me if Damon did this you, right?" he asks seriously

I nod my head, afraid my voice might give something away.

…

Damon started breakfast when he was done playing doctor. I watched him carefully as he worked. I realized then that cooking was therapeutic for him. He used that time to think while his hands moved methodically. He made crepes with fruit, whipped cream and chocolate syrup. Then he made an over-easy egg for me with a side of toast.

Damon Senior came out the shower before breakfast was done. He was going to take the seat next to me but my Damon gave him a glare that even scared me.

We all sat on the table quietly. My Damon looked restless when he finally got a chance to sit down. He grabbed my good hand kissed my palm as soon as he sat down. He served Damon Senior an enormous amount of food.

We were half-way through the meal when Damon Senior spoke.

"I'm truly sorry for my behavior this morning," he said and I looked up. It was the first time I saw him relaxed. He was quite handsome when he fixed himself up. He wore jeans and t-shirt as he sat across from us.

"No worries," I say while I fumble through the reply in my head.

"I can see that my son adores you a great deal. May I ask your name?" he asks

I smile. Damon Senior was oddly polite. I feel Damon's hand capture my good one and squeeze lightly.

"Elena," I almost croak from nervousness. This was Damon's dad! And I was wearing Damon's boxers! And O god, I didn't have a bra.

"Elena… I've heard that name before. Anna has mentioned you."

I'm smiling too widely and my cheeks start to hurt. Damon squeezes my hand again.

"You're making her nervous," my Damon scolds. Damon Senior cracks a smile. Then I see it… the resemblance I had yet to see. They had the same smile. That trademark Damon Salvatore smile.

"I'll be leaving soon. I have business meeting on the south side of town. I have some clients interested in proposition I have offered them" Damon senior answers after a pause.

Damon looks at me carefully and from that I know that there is no business meeting. Damon Senior is lying. I can guess that he is trying to make my Damon proud.

Damon moves his food on his plate before he answers. "When will you be back? You went missing for two weeks."

Damon Senior frowns. "Soon, I won't keep the family waiting."

Damon senior got up and made his way back to the kitchen to dispose of his plate.

"Amazing food, son. You have a gift," Damon Seniors says as he makes his way toward us.

My Damon lifts himself from his chair before Damon Senior is able to approach me.

He blocks Damon Senior from the left side so Damon Senior tries the right side but he gets blocked again.

"I just want to say goodbye Damon," Damon Senior confesses.

"Then say it but you're not touching her again," Damon says with a look that sent shivers down my spine.

Damon Senior nodded in comprehension.

"Goodbye Miss Elena, I hope next time we meet in better terms," he tells me before he walks toward the door. My Damon follows him out and they have a private conversation just outside the apartment.

…

When Damon returns, he has an exhausted look on his face. I come up to him slowly, checking if he wants to be alone first. He looks at me and I know he doesn't.

I walk faster and he opens his arms for me. He doesn't say anything as he holds me.

"Please don't leave," he whispers almost inaudibly. I hold onto him tighter.

….

We start to clean the dishes together when I notice he made enough food to feed an army not just three people.

"You made so much food!" I tease

He smiles. "Well I thought I would be hungrier and you ate like a bird."

I look at the whipped cream and decide I'm hungry all over again. He left it in a bowl so I swipe some with my finger and put it in my mouth.

"You should make crepes more often. This cream rocks!" I say with too much enthusiasm. He stops washing dishes and wipes his hands with a nearby towel.

"I didn't even get to taste it," he says and I pick up the bowl to offer him some. He grabs the bowl and puts it to the side. Then grabs my face and to give me a knee shaking kiss. It's long and lingering but it stops too soon.

"I like it. Creamy, delicious, downright orgasmic," He say slowly inches from my mouth.

I smile and reach over for a strawberry. "And what about the strawberries? Did you taste the strawberries?" I ask as I take a bite out of a whole one. He smiles and dives in for another kiss. He takes his time on my lower lip tugging on it softly with his teeth then makes his way down my neck.

"Sweet, yummy and makes me want more," he says as he comes back to my lips. I reach for the chocolate syrup but he pushes it away.

"You don't like chocolate?" I ask incredulously as he makes a beeline on my jaw to my ear.

He stops for a second and gives me a breathtaking Damon Salvatore signature smile.

"I adore chocolate but your lips are much sweeter," he says before he picks me up and carries me back to the bedroom.

**This was supposed to be the first part of Chapter 21 but I haven't updated in a while so I just posted this part as a short chapter. **


	22. Boy meets aftermath

**I apologize for the first part. That is seriously how I write in my diary. I just scribble down any random thought that pops into my head so I wrote Elena's entry in the same way. And the rest, well the rest of the chapter is just the rest of the chapter….**

**Two weeks later, December 23rd**

**Elena's Diary…**

_Dear Diary,_

_My cheeks hurt from smiling so much. There MUST be some law against feeling this happy because it's too damn good for it not too be illegal. I wish I could just bottle this feeling and save it for other days. I have some happiness to spare and my aunt is right there with me. She's still reeling from Alaric's proposal. Alaric is an amazing guy and I can't wait until he joins our small family. Jenna asked me to be her maid of honor today! Eek! I'm soooo excited!_

_My brother doesn't seem to mind all the romantic vibes in the house. He's pretty much got a grin from ear to ear. Anna makes him so happy and they're soooo cute together. Damon's still Mr. Grumpy about them but he's dealing. He probably has a small bruise on his ribs from all the times I've elbowed him. His excuse is that his big brother gene is written in his DNA and there's pretty much nothing he can do about it. I give him a dramatic eye roll and he laughs then all is better._

_Being with Damon now is soooo much better than before. Now I'm not scared. It's almost simple. Boy meets girl. Boy likes girl. Girl likes boy. We're still trying to squeeze in some time for each other but we try. Texts. Phone calls. Anna yelling at us to get a room during lunch. Winter break was proving to be helpful since classes were out. Spending the day in the park with him and his siblings was wonderful. It was our very own snow day. _

_So now that I have more time with my incredible boyfriend, I'm pretty darn sure that I'm gonna be hit by a flying asteroid. Yup, just dink! Fall. Things are too good and my luck is bound to run sooner or later. Ugh, well at least I had today. My perfect snow day with Damon and his three snow angels._

_Elena_

**A few hours later…**

I know my Aunt is driving as fast as she safely can but the need to tap my foot is irresistible. It's making her nervous so I try to stop but I can't help it.

"How much longer?" I ask for the fifth time.

She keeps her eyes trained on the road.

"The hospital is around the corner, don't worry we'll get there," she says as we make a right.

I suddenly see the enormous building from a short distance. My heart is now thumping loud enough to deafen my ears. The sound of it makes me want me to jump out of the car and run to the hospital. The only thing stopping me from opening the car door is the small amount of logic that I have left. The car can take me faster than my feet. My brain has been a complete mess since Anna called me crying. My aunt snatched the keys from my hands before I realized that I was in no shape to drive.

"We're here," my Aunt says as she pulls into the drive way of the ER. I look up in surprise since I was lost in my head for a moment.

I struggle with the car door for a second before I burst out of the slow moving vehicle. I almost fall but I balance myself before I cause any real damage. My aunt yells at me but I don't catch what she says. I'm too focused on how fast my feet can take me.

I reach the receptionist desk in a frenzy and almost yell, "Damon Salvatore!" My voice wakes up the nurse immediately. It's 4 am.

…

Room 47B. He's in room 47B. They transferred him after surgery. I run to the elevators to make my way up to the fourth floor. I don't think I've ever been in a slower elevator.

_Ding! _I rush out quickly when the double doors open.

47B. Room 47B.

43A. Skip. 46B, 47A, 47B… 47B!

I rush in and a nurse is placing a white sheet over his face.

"What are you doing? You'll suffocate him!" I yell at her. Her head snaps up and she's wondering what the hell I'm doing here.

Her face calms when her surprise subsides.

"I'm sorry sweetie, the doctor called time of death several minutes ago."

"No!" I hear someone yell. Takes me a second to realize it's me.

The nurse takes a deep breath before she starts to make her way toward me. I feel numb at the moment. The asteroid just hit me.

"Let me take you outside. You shouldn't see this."

I'm too numb to argue so I let her steer me out and that's when I finally spot my Damon.

…

He's arguing with someone and I can clearly see that he's trying to control his temper. I yank my hand from the nurse's grip and run to him. He's in the far corner of the hallway. The nurse yells something but again I don't catch it.

Damon's arguing with a middle aged woman in khaki slacks. I start to hear the conversation as I approach them.

"You can't do this. They're my brother and sisters," he tells her firmly.

She looks at him fiercely. "I am well aware of that Mr. Salvatore but you are an eighteen year old boy. Do you really think you can take care of three kids? I'm only looking out for their best interest," she retorts with the same firmness.

She's so small in comparison that Damon towers over her but her stance tells me she's not backing down.

"I'm looking out for their best interest," he tells her in a lethal tone. I'm only a few feet away but neither of them notices me. I decide to stay put.

"I don't think you understand these kids just lost their last surviving parent. They need a stable home," she states in the same tone.

"O and the day their father dies you just want to tear them away from their home. That doesn't quite make sense to me," Damon says in borderline condescending tone. She looks up into his eyes viciously but he doesn't back down. The momentary stand-off ends quickly.

"You're right," she says between her teeth, "They should come home with you but I'm only the in-house social worker for this hospital. An official social worker will come by tonight to look at the case and deliberate."

Damon calms himself a smidge. The kids get to go home with him.

"Tomorrow's Christmas," he tells her when he's more relaxed.

The woman purses her lips before she answers, "December 26th. In two days, they're will be social worker knocking on your doorstep. Be warned that our first priority is providing the children with safe and secure homes," she says before she leaves flipping through the pages of a blue folder.

…

Damon walks off in the opposite direction of the lady. He travels aimlessly for awhile. I follow cautiously as I see him slowly slipping into panic. He looks lost until he finds the door to the staircase. A secluded place. He rushes in and I quickly follow.

The first thing I hear is a booming roar. I didn't think such a noise could come out of human being. The sound came from Damon who was sporting a crazed look on his face. He's slamming his fist on the wall while yelling and cursing.

"Damon?" I whisper afraid of his reaction. Not that I'm afraid that he'd hurt me. I'm more anxious about whether I'm doing the right thing. He turns around to face me and wipes his eyes with his forearm.

"Elena? What are you doing here?" he asks me as he fixes his hair.

"Anna called me. She said she was scared because Damon senior was in an accident. So I got in a car and rushed over," I say as I approach him. He seems much calmer now and I'm glad my presence isn't unwelcomed.

He gulps and wipes his eyes again. "It was a hit and run. My dad was walking on a sidewalk when a drunk driver spun out of control and hit him. The driver didn't even have the god damned decency to check if my Dad was still breathing!"

I flinch at the intensity of the conversation. What can I say? By personal experience I know that the only way to get through something is to get through it. There is no perfect thing to say or do. I reach over to grab his hand and squeeze. The people I thank most in my time of need were those who were there when everything seemed so ugly and impossible.

"I'm sorry Damon," I whisper. He tugs at his hand so I release. He looks flustered like he doesn't know what to say.

"I'm fine. I just to need time to figure some things out," he tells me with a composed face. He's not fine but the wounds are fresh. Sometimes the best remedy is to let your mind slowly come to realization. 'Cause when something hits you this hard, you know it wasn't a dinky hybrid, it was a giant eighteen wheeler.

"I'm here for you, Damon. Anything you need," I reassure him. He just nods in response. I remember the feeling, numbness. I guess it's mind's natural defense system.

"I need to take them home. My head is spinning and I need time to figure some things out," he repeats. It feels like he's not talking to me. He is just telling himself what he needs to do.

"Do you want me to come with you?" I ask wanting and needing to be useful in some way.

He looks up in surprise as if he just noticed I was there.

"It's fine. Just go home," he tells me softly. He starts to walk pass me but he places a small kiss on my cheek before he opens the door.

"I'll come by later on today," I tell him. He won't make the mistakes I made. I won't let him. He might need some space now. Space for himself. Space with his family but he was there for me. He helped me through a lot. It was hard and difficult and sometimes I thought he was pushy. Yet, in the end doing something always meant more than any empty promises.

**Damon's POV…**

Crap. Holy shit! Cheese and rice! Think straight, think straight. Green means go, red means stop.

18, I'm just 18. Green means go. Gas pedal push. I can do this. 18, 18. 19 in six months. Does that matter?

Crap. Start again. Money. They need to see me financially stable. Right? Age is just a number right?

Stop. Park. Brake. Home.

Anna says, "I've got Effy."

I grab Eazy. He's dead tired. Knocked out in the car. He knows but does he really know? Does he get it? Dad is not coming back now. Not now, not ever.

In the hospital he asked, "Is he with mom now?"

Heaven? Real or not? Should I have brought them to the hospital? I didn't really have a choice. Sheriff Forbes called me at midnight. Dad was in an accident. I didn't know it would be like this. I had no idea. Maybe I should have left them with someone but the news would have been the same.

They got a chance to see their dad one last time.

So, was he in heaven now?

"Yeah he is," I told Eazy.

Tears dripped down after that. I never felt more like a kid than at that moment. I wanted answers. How do I handle this? Who do I call? There was no one there to answer me.

Stairs. Open front door. Bedroom. Lay Eazy down.

Doorbell rings. Look at the clock. 5 in the morning. Elena?

Nope. Stefan in pajamas.

"I heard," Stefan says. I nod.

"I'm not entirely sure how to act right now. I know I don't always the right things but I know that I want to be there for you. I want to help you," he says.

I bite the inside of my cheek. I need time to figure things out. Life is on fire.

"I need time to figure things out," I tell him. Still numb.

He pulls out something from his back. A stack of papers and his laptop.

"And I came prepared to help. Adoption rules. Age requirements. Real life stories. I've got it all. I wanna help," he says earnestly. I move out of the way to let him in. He quickly enters the apartment.

"My mom called Sheriff Forbes. Any calls about Senior will go to her. She's got the funeral," he tells me as he spreads the papers out on the kitchen table. I start scan through the papers and Anna finally comes out of her room.

"What's going on?" she asks.

"The aftermath," I answer.

* * *

**I know i'm writing shorter chapters. Sorry. These chapters are harder to write. The story is ending soon, I dont know how many chapters are left. I thought i could finish it by chapter 23 but i dont think i can.**


	23. Girl meets Aftermath

**Elena's POV…**

I don't remember the car ride home. Everything around me just seemed to be winding down a drain in to some abyss. My world was flipped upside down and I wasn't even in the middle of the apocalypse. Damon was there. I was just the useless bystander who was hoping desperately for some sort of purpose.

When the car ride was over and we pulled into the driveway, I didn't dare move a muscle. What was I going to do? Go back to sleep? That was literally impossible at the moment; my eyes had never been so wide awake. My aunt came around to open my car door when she noticed I was still sitting in the car like a doe-eyed zombie.

She nudged me to bring me back to life. "Elena, are you okay?" she asked after she nudged.

I wanted to tell her that my zombie-like stare was the least of my problems right now. Damon was in trouble and I was at home feeling like a bad girlfriend and even worse a bad friend. I should have insisted that I stay with him but if you could have just seen his face. His pleading eyes told me he was at a breaking point. If I made one wrong or pushy move he might break like glass. I didn't want to tip him over, so I gave him the space he wanted.

I looked up at my Aunt trying to find my next move in her eyes. She was my parent now and yet she was only eleven years older than me. She looked at me like she wanted to give me that perfect answer. Her next words gave me some purpose.

"You should tell Jeremy. Damon senior was Anna's dad too," she said calmly.

The words made my frozen body come back to life. I made my out of the car purposefully. How could I have forgotten Jeremy? He would have wanted to come with me.

I contemplated my words as Aunt Jenna jiggled the lock of the front door with her keys. I was the first one to enter and I quickly made my way up the stairs. When I turned to look at my Aunt, she was gradually making her way to the couch in a wobbly way. I thought she might crash as soon as her head hit the pillows. I continued to make my way up the stairs.

My mind still hadn't decided what to say when I opened Jeremy's bedroom door. It was five in the morning so he was still sound asleep with his head smothered in pillows. His blankets were sprawled across the bed in no particular pattern. He was not a still sleeper.

"Jeremy," I whispered hoping the right words would come to mind when he woke up.

He moved a little at the sound of my voice but his head was still in a haze. I nudged his shoulder a little to wake him up a little more. He shrugged off the nudge so I whispered louder.

"Jeremy wake up!" I said in a stage whisper.

His eyes finally opened and I waited for him to fully come out of his dream. He looked at his bedside digital clock before he looked up at me.

"Lena, it's early. Go back to bed," he answered before he placed his head back on his pillow.

"Jeremy, you have to wake up. Something happened," I somewhat pleaded at my stubborn brother.

At the realization of a possible situation or the desperation in my voice, he lifted his head from the pillow and gave me his undivided attention.

"What happened?" he asked more alert of his surroundings.

"Jer, Anna's dad died this morning," I told him softly trying to cushion the blow.

He shot out of bed, consequently throwing his blankets on the floor. He searched desperately for something in every corner of his room. He looked like the Tasmanian devil as he quickly flipped over every object on the floor of his messy room.

I took a seat on his bed as I watched him.

"What are you looking for?" I asked when curiosity got the best of me.

"Phone," was his only answer

"What for?" I asked even though I had an assumption.

"I need to call, Anna," he said while rummaging through his hamper to check the pockets of his jeans.

I quickly pulled out my own phone and said, "Use mine."

He didn't give it a second thought. He was dialing the number as soon as he had at it in hands. I counted the seconds as the whisper of telephone rings resonated through the room. She didn't pick up.

He dialed again. No answer. Then again. No answer.

"She's not picking up," He told me in growing panic, "we should drive over to her apartment."

"They want to be left alone for a bit," I told him softly trying to slow down his panic.

"How do you know that?" he asked quickly.

"I visited them at the hospital. I only saw Anna long enough to give her a quick hug but they just need time to digest it."

"Why didn't you wake me up sooner?!" he asked switching from panic to a bit of anger.

I looked at him apologetically. I should have woken him up. I had no good excuse. " I'm sorry, I just ran out of the house so quickly that nothing crossed my mind but getting there as fast as possible. I had tunnel vision."

He thought over my answer for awhile with a face made out of stone. When his face finally relaxed, I knew from his expression that he would not hold it against me. This was no time to argue. He jumped to a different topic.

"What exactly happened?"

I had some gaps in the actual storyline but I pieced together what I knew from Anna's phone call and my brief encounter with Damon. I looked at my hand before I could answer, hoping to say what I wanted to say in a decent but truthful way.

"A drunk driver crashed into Mr. Salvatore around midnight. He was critically injured so they hastily took him into surgery. He died in recovery," I answered keeping the story short. I could tell that the story made Jeremy angst-y all over again. His hands repeatedly opened and closed into a fist. It took him awhile before he could have something to say.

"God, I need something to do! I can't just sit here doing nothing. This is big, Elena," he said as began to pace, "I should be with Anna right now."

I looked at him intently. I wondered if he understood the possibility of Anna's departure, yet. I pushed the thought aside refusing to believe such an awful possibility. When he caught my eye, he stopped moving.

It seemed like we had the same thought when we both made a beeline for the door and down the stairs. The sound of our heavy steps woke up our Aunt but we didn't stop to greet her. We just kept going till we hit the kitchen. She followed us.

We didn't bother turning on the lights when we finally entered the kitchen. I could hear Jeremy rummaging noisily through some pots and pans, so I opened the refrigerator door to look for some supplies.

Our Aunt flipped the light switch and the sudden light made my head dizzy and my eyes hurt.

"Umm… is there something going on here? Did I miss something?" she announced when we began making a mess of her kitchen.

Jeremy looked up from the cabinets and I turned around to look at him. We meet each other's gazes before we answered.

"Food," he said sticking to his one word answers

"We're making food," I added

"Why?" she asked as she internally questioned our sanity.

"When our parents died…" Jeremy began

"Everyone brought food," I finished

"Lots of food," Jeremy said when he finally pulled out the baking dishes.

"All kinds of food," I added as I piled the eggs and milk in my hands.

"And that helped?" my aunt asked as our intentions became clear.

"Not really," we answered in unison.

"Then why are you making food?" she asked confused once again.

"It's something to do and it's what you do," Jeremy answered as he made his way to the cupboard.

"We can't sit around doing nothing. And even if food didn't help us, it was still something that told us the people had us in their minds or in their prayers," I added.

Our Aunt looked at us again before deciding something. She pulled out her car keys from her pocket and breathed a long breath.

"I don't have much in the kitchen… tell me what you need, there's a supermarket across town that's going to open soon," she said in a 'if you can't beat them, join them' kinda way.

Jeremy and I quickly started rattling off missing ingredients like chocolate chips and baking powder. My Aunt took out a paper and pen.

**Damon's POV…**

It didn't seem like he was talking anymore. I just kept seeing his lips move but nothing was coming out. To be perfectly honest, I didn't want my hearing back. I actually wanted this silence. Stefan had said nothing good since he got here.

That last fact wasn't his fault. He was just the bearer of bad news. The messenger wasn't to blame.

_The state of Virginia requires that adoption applicants be twenty-five years old _he said

_Applicants must be able to financially capable _he whispered. I'd probably have to quit school to fully support them without Damon Senior's unemployment check.

Then again and again, he read _Looking for the best interest of the child. _

Meaning that preconceived biases of a fit parent were often used in court to argue a case. Having a single parent, who so happened to be eighteen, was not on their long list of a fit parent for three kids.

After awhile, I just stop responding to a frazzled Stefan. After more time had passed, I stopped listening. Then when more time passed everything around me went mute. The world wasn't spinning or on fire, it was just in slow motion. As if I had all the time in the world but I had no damn clue what to do with that time.

**Elena's POV...**

By ten in the morning, we had made thirty six muffins, three different flavored cakes and seventy two cupcakes. Jeremy was pulling out the most recent batch of cupcakes when I finished the count. I took a moment to step out of the frenzy and just look at the kitchen counters.

Every inch of the room was covered in baked goods. I hadn't noticed it until now. In the back of mind, I knew it was excessive but it kept us busy. We just kept mixing and stirring. Then when one batter was ready, we popped it into the oven and started another one. We never waited for something to rise. Our hands were always busy. Whether it was cleaning or measuring, we didn't stop.

I looked over to Jeremy when I realized the excessiveness. He looked up at me in the next moment.

"Do you think this is enough?" I asked him motioning toward counters. He followed my stare and surveyed the kitchen. His eyes widened as he took it in, as if he too hadn't noticed.

My aunt entered the kitchen before Jeremy could answer my question. After she dropped off the groceries, she had let us be. I had feeling that our erratic behavior had something to do with her quick departure. She knew this was something we had to do on our own. On the other hand, she was also running on two hours of sleep. She told us she taking a quick 'cat nap'. We didn't bother waking her up when she stayed sleeping, if she could sleep then good for her.

Her eyebrows shot up at the sight of the kitchen. There were baked goods everywhere and looking at my flour smudged, batter filled hair brother, I thought I was in some sort of mess too. Though looking at my shirt, I was probably worse.

"Soo… I think we're good now?" she asked us with a strained smile. I looked at Jeremy and he looked at me. Then he turned to look at the clock.

"I think ten is good, we should head down to apartment," Jeremy announced.

My aunt came around closer. "Maybe you two should take a shower first?" she asked as if she was walking on eggshells and trying not to crack them.

"Shower?" I pondered, "Yes, we should take a shower."

Damon and Anna needed strong stable people, not flour ghosts knocking on their door step. Jeremy nodded. I took one last look at the kitchen, it was a total mess.

My aunt gave me a one-sided smile. "I've got the mess. You both take shower and go. I'll have Alaric take me as soon as he can."

I nodded and climbed the stairs.

**Damon's POV…**

At the moment, I think we are researching stories of people who did the impossible. Those stories you hear about on the news about that one older brother who got to raise his younger sister and keep their family together.

Those amazing stories that were the exception to the rule but the reality of my situation was that I was the rule not the exception. The kids were too young. I was too young. None of the stars were aligning. There was no fairy god mother or shooting star.

I was eighteen. I couldn't follow them wherever they went. I wasn't a kid. I was an adult with a kid stamp, unable to do what real adults did. After a while, I started to think about strange people taking my siblings and raising them. The thought corrupted my mind and swallowed it whole. What if they separated because none of them were entirely siblings? What if no one took them? What if they were stuck in foster care? What if their new parents weren't good?

I didn't even notice my hand on the door knob until a voice screeched through the silence. It was Anna.

"What are you doing?" she asked. I took my hand off the door knob and turned to look at her. I was unaware of how I managed to get off my seat and to the front door without a clue on how I got there.

"I don't know," I answer feeling oddly out of my skin. My skin was sweaty. My hair was matted. What was I doing? What was happening to me?

Stefan came up to me and I didn't move a muscle. I was afraid that I was falling apart and my heart was going to jump out of my chest. Then my hair was going to fall out my head and my skin was going to melt away. None of these ideas made sense and yet I was so afraid of them being real. Why? I was quickly losing my mind.

"Take a break, Damon. Take walk. Take drive. Take a breath. I've got the kids." I heard Stefan say. No better words had ever come out of his mouth. I took his offer, though it sounded more like a demand.

I walked straight to my car without a second look back. I need to stop doing what I was doing and turn back to normal. I just didn't know how.

**Elena's POV…**

By the time we got to their apartment it was eleven. I wasn't sure if it was considered enough space for Damon but I couldn't restrain myself any longer. I had to see them. I wanted to help.

Jeremy carried the three cakes in a perilous balance as I carried an over-sized basket of cupcakes and muffins up the stairs. We hadn't talked the whole ride over. Most of communication felt weirdly telepathic, just nods and motions. I rang the doorbell when we finally made it up the stairs.

The door opened up quickly, as if they were expecting us.

"Stefan?" I said confused. His facial expression told me that I was not the person he was expecting.

"Hey you guys come on in," he said formally. We followed suit and placed the goods on the small kitchen table.

Effy and Eazy were dazed in front of the TV. It felt odd when they didn't run to me as soon as I opened the door.

"How have they been?" I asked Stefan in a whisper.

"Effy and Eazy?... I don't know, I mean they look and act fine but… something's different. I think they know but … it hasn't really hit them yet," Stefan said looking at them.

Jeremy and I went to them as soon as we took off our jackets.

Their responses were short, as if they just wanted to watch TV and nothing else. When we felt intrusive we let them be. I had to remind myself that they were small. They wouldn't handle this situation like Jeremy and I handled it. Kids had a hard time expressing themselves on a daily basis. I tried to imagine if a kid was on an emotional overload.

I came back to the kitchen and took two chocolate muffins from the basket to give them. I was hoping they had turned out good. Jeremy and I weren't exactly bakers but my mom was amazing chef.

"Are you hungry, Eazy?" I asked giving him a basic need to think about. Hunger was a simple emotion if food was available.

He smiled weakly as I handed him the muffin. His first bite was small and I had this strange feeling that he wise beyond his years at that moment. As if he took that bite to make me feel better because then I could feel useful. He smiled because he knew I didn't want to see him sad. He was so young and yet he wanted to console me.

The thought of his wisdom struck a sad chord in my heart. No kid should have to grow so fast and endure so much pain. No kid should have to understand sorrow in such a profound way. I smiled back at him and handed Effy the next muffin.

She took a bigger bite, as if hunger was actually the prime emotion behind her taking the muffin. I didn't see the same understanding in her eyes and somehow it made me feel happy that her childhood kingdom was still well intact.

I walked away after that to find Stefan and Jeremy talking and eating. Jeremy left his side and walked to Anna's room before I could reach them.

"Anna's in her room?" I assumed

"Yea," Stefan said taking a bit of a banana nut muffin.

"Where's Damon?" I asked

"You missed him by twenty minutes."

"Where'd he go?"

"I am not exactly sure. I don't know when he'll be back either. He's not himself at the moment," Stefan added as he finished the muffin. I didn't have much time to think about his response when Jeremy came walking back.

"She wants to see you," Jeremy answered quietly.

I nodded and headed to the bedroom she shared with little Effy.

When I opened the door, I didn't know how I would find her. I was thinking she would look distraught but the reality was nothing close.

She had no tears or messy hair. She looked freshly showered. I thought she might have been hiding out in her room but now I think she was just getting dressed. She wasn't acting like I did, the day my parents died.

"Hey Anna, how are you holding up?" I asked

She shrugged as if she held no emotion at all. People had different ways of dealing. Effy was content with television. Eazy was preoccupied looking after her as he played his big brother card. Anna was deflated.

"Okay, you know," she responded as she finished brushing her hair. I actually did know. Jeremy and I were one of the few people who could truly empathize with her.

I nodded and sat myself on her neat bed. She crouched down to pull out a box from underneath her bed. It was long but not too wide. She placed it by me on the bed.

"Some early acceptance letters came in for Damon. I've been racing to the mailbox to keep our ninja turtle plan alive," she said with a weak smile.

I thought this was strange time to bring this up. "Anna, we can do this later," I told her.

"No, I have to this right now. Damon… like I said… he's too brilliant not to go. He's gonna go. You have to make him go… I mean it Elena," she said finally showing some emotion.

"What are you talking about?" I asked her.

A tear escaped her right eye and she roughly wiped it away. "We've been up all night Elena. We've looked at every possibility. He's too young. I'm not staying here," she said firmly trying to keep her emotions in check.

"No… there has to be away. Damon's not going to let this happen," I told her

She shook her head slowly holding back tears. "No, Elena," she whispered to me as if I was a stubborn child, "they're coming the day after the next. They're not going to let us stay and you have to promise me that when I leave that Damon will get to live his life. You have to swear to me that even if you have to carry him kicking and screaming, that he will follow his dreams."

"No, you're gonna be here when I have to carry him kicking and screaming. You and Effy and Eazy. All of you!" I told her trying to keep my cool but failing.

"Just promise me Elena," she pleaded with me, "Just tell me you will. This is Damon's chance for a normal life."

"No! For god sakes Anna, this isn't how it was supposed to happen," I told her trying to get to agree with me.

"I know, Elena! But this is it, this is my life and his life and Effy's and Eazy's life. We can't trade it or rewind it. So promise me! He has this amazing chance, he shouldn't throw it away," she said pushing the box of early acceptance letters in my hands.

I pushed it back to her hands. "Anna, even if he had his dream in his hands he wouldn't want it if you weren't there. Damon is not going to lose you guys!"

"Damn it, Elena! We aren't going to be there. We don't have an Aunt who wants to take us in to clothe and feed us. I'm fifteen! They're gonna put me in the foster care and nobody's gonna want me! There is no fairy tale, so get over this idea that Damon's some knight in shining armor who gonna fix everything!" she yelled.

I looked straight into her eyes as began slowing down her breaths from her long winded speech. Jeremy rushed in a second later, I pushed the box back into her hands and walked out the bedroom door.

I made my way to the front door in haste. Putting on my winter coat halted my flow.

"Where are you going?" Stefan asked on his second muffin.

"To see Damon," I said in an unfriendly way. I wasn't in a mood to play Ms. Manners.

"How? You don't know where he is."

"I know where he is," I said before I stormed out.

**Sorry about the long wait. I'm going to try to keep the updates less than two weeks but that's the best I can do. I will finish it, don't fret. I know the ending and I want to write it.**


	24. Boy meets Uncle

**I know this isn't nearly enough but it's all I had and I promised myself I would post something this weekend…..**

**Elena's POV…**

I guess in my little perfect world, I would have opened the barn doors and found Damon. We would have talked for a while. I would have gotten him back home safe but most off all we would have figured everything out. We would have come back to the apartment with the perfect plan. No one would have to leave. Life could continue on…

But I didn't live in my little perfect world. There was no miracle plan. This was the space between a rock and a hard place.

I opened the barn doors to find a desolate room. Damon wasn't where I thought he would be. His mind was somewhere else entirely. As I search the barn thoroughly, I wonder how I could have thought something so complicated could be resolved so simply. Was it so wrong to think that a miracle would see us through?

I stood in the middle of the barn contemplating every minute detail. I wasn't sure what to do now, so I let my legs give out and caught myself before I hit the ground.

As I settled into scattered hay, I looked at my phone once more. I called him twice before. There are no missed messages. No missed calls.

I contemplated the idea of "this isn't how it was supposed to happen," and replaced it with, "Then how was it supposed to happen?"

**Damon's POV….**

I don't know what brought me here. I guess extremely optimistic hope. I just had to make the first move but my hands were still glued to the steering wheel. I breathed in one long breath before I finally moved. 1…2…3… up…. and out of the car

Before I could fully comprehend even the slightest original thought, I was ringing the doorbell.

The maid answered the door enthusiastically, "Mr. Salvatore, Welcome!" My lips couldn't return her smile. My thoughts couldn't contemplate the smallest greeting. I responded with the only words my head contained.

"My uncle," I whispered to her. She had to lean in to hear me almost mouth the words.

She nodded her head in comprehension and led me into the grand foyer. I looked at the winding staircases on the opposite of sides of the foyer. I suddenly felt small in this familiar place. I placed my hand on the intricately designed newel post as we passed between the staircases. The words: expensive and luxurious crossed my mind.

Then I looked the enormous chandelier placed on the ceiling above my head. My uncle… this place, this grand beautiful place, this was my uncle's place.

I followed the maid to his study on the far west side of the house. I couldn't for the life of me remember the maid's name, so I made no polite chit chat. I simply took in the rest of the house, as if I was looking at it for the first time in my life. Everything seemed foreign. Childhood memories of another lifetime. Stefan and I playing cowboys with plastic toy guns.

The maid knocked three times before he answered her call.

"Come in!" he yelled

The maid opened the door and I walked in nodding my thanks to her. I looked into the study and saw my stoic uncle.

Childhood memories flooded my mind again. My mother holding me and kissing me. My father teaching me how to fish by the lake. Warmth and love. Then fights and hardships but still warmth and love.

"Damon, sit down. Please, would you like Eloise to bring you anything?" he asks. No true warmth, the tips of my fingers feel cold like they're being pricked.

I shake my head and sit in a leather chair. Childhood memories of Stefan's face glued to the window before I came to visit. His father was too busy to truly spend any real time with him. His mother was kind and sweet but lacking the empathy of my mother.

"How are you?" he asks me

"Dealing," I say

He comes around his desk to stand in front of me, slightly sitting on his desk with his arms crossed. This was the man who could save me before I was forced to let go of the cliff I was barely hanging on to and yet I couldn't help dislike everything about him. God, I didn't want to do this.

He's tapping his finger as he waits for me to continue. This was the man.

"Can I help you with anything? Do you need to talk through the death?" he asks as if my presence was beyond any logical understanding. Maybe it was.

"No, death I can deal with. My brother and sisters," I say

"Ah… yes I see. Well," he starts before he uncrosses his arms, "Damon, my wife and I… we can't take them."

I look at him with eyes furrowed and a tightly wound barely there smile. Why? I ask myself. He sees the question blatantly on my face.

"I know it's hard for you to understand. It's hard for me to put in words," he tells me as if I am naïve child with no true knowledge of the adult world.

"Try," I challenge

His jaw grows tight from my challenge.

"My wife and I have raised our child. We don't have the capacity to take three more and start all over again. We have thought about this hard and long. We have lives that cannot accommodate or adjust to such young children."

I think about his statement. The amount of sacrifice and time a single child takes. The amount love and warmth needed to raise them properly with the knowledge that they have and will always be loved. I couldn't see that in my socialite Aunt or my stern uncle.

I look at him hard deciding my next words carefully. "You would only be the father on paper," I tell him as clearly as I possibly can.

He looks me confused and then reverts back to baseline. "Damon… I'm not… ever going to be a paper father. If I have a child or I agree to raise a child. Then I want to raise that child under my terms and my roof. My child is my child. There will never be any in-betweens."

The visit is a dead end. My uncle has never been swayed from his opinion and in a small way I understand him, I just can't empathize.

I lift myself carefully from the chair. I notice for the first time in my life that I am slightly taller than him. Just an inch maybe two. I didn't have to look up to talk to him, like before.

As his eyes notice the same thing, I can't help but see the slightest bit of hesitance or regret or maybe even worry. It was hard to tell but there was some emotion behind his Salvatore green eyes, my father's eyes.

"I'm sorry, Damon," he tells me with small crack in voice. I only nod my head before I leave the room.

**Very short…. I know. I'm truly sorry. I need your patience because I had more time in the summer to write this story and now I don't have that time. The story will be finished… I promise. As a favor please do not guess the ending in the reviews. Thank you.**


	25. Girls meets Runaway

With every passing minute, I was calling myself every kind of stupid. I was waiting in a secluded and abandoned barn for my missing boyfriend. It was insane and it made no logical sense. I just had a gut feeling and it wasn't letting me go anywhere else anytime soon.

Playing angry birds was helping the time pass just a little bit faster but I was still wired. I'd have to crash soon. I hadn't gotten much sleep at all.

_beep…beep…_

I almost dropped my phone when I saw that someone had messaged me. When I took a look, I was severely disappointed.

It was Jeremy. _Have you heard from him yet…._

I didn't bother responding. My mood was down in the sewers and I wasn't about to take it out on my poor brother.

Then suddenly I heard the barn doors prop open. I didn't have to look up to know it was Damon. When I saw him, I felt like I was looking at a ghost. All the life in him seemed to be drained out.

His eyes had the darkest shadows underneath them. His hair didn't have a single pattern. Even his clothes looked… big on him as if he shrunk. I noticed that I had never seen Damon this way. Not when he worked two jobs and still managed to get to school. Not when he had stayed up all night to write the three essays that were oddly due on the same day. When he looked at me as if I were a stranger, I realized then that I had never seen Damon this way because this wasn't a look of exhaustion but of defeat.

I approached him slowly, afraid I might scare him way and when he finally recognized me in the fog of his mind, I ran to him. I crashed into him in a massive hug trying to instill the strength I had left straight into his body, if that were at all possible. I looked up to see if it had worked.

It hadn't.

I still couldn't see my Damon in him. I hugged him even harder and when he finally reciprocated the hug, I felt relieved.

"Can I do anything?" I asked him softly. He hugged me harder.

"Run away with me," he whispered in my ear. It caught me so off guard that I let go of him in an instant.

"What?" I asked bewildered

"Run away with me, let's take the kids and Anna and let's just go," he pleaded with tears on the brink of falling out.

Anna had once told me she had never seen him cry after his beloved mother's death. I couldn't imagine it if I wasn't seeing it. But these weren't tears for the loss of a beloved; they were tears for his siblings.

"Where?" I asked unable to say anything else. He wiped the tears roughly from his face, just like his sister. They didn't like showing vulnerability. Tears were traitors to their personalities.

"Anywhere, everywhere. Let's just run and never stop," he said while he grabbed my hands in his.

I looked at him stunned. This couldn't be an actual plan.

"Damon, I can't," I told him and the pain I saw in his face struck me so hard that I felt the air leave my lungs. The pressure in my chest hindered my breaths and the feeling in my throat made it hard to swallow.

"Yes you can. We'll live each day one at a time, come with me?" he asked. I took back my hands.

"I can't do this…"

"Yes you can. You just don't want to," he said in spite

"And you can't do this Damon. Have you even put any real thought into this?" I asked with vigor, trying to snap some of the sense he had lost back into him.

"Yes, it's you and me and them. That's all I need, I don't need anything else," he said with his hands over his face trying to suppress the emotions he was holding back.

"And what about what they need? A stable home, school, food, a normal life," I pleaded back

"We'll figure it out," he said with less enthusiasm. Logic was sinking back in.

"Damon you want the best for brothers and sisters. This isn't it."

"Then what is? You had Jenna! I have nobody!" he exclaimed but it wasn't directed toward me. It was more directed toward the ceiling, maybe to a higher being.

"Damon we can't run away with target on our backs. Effy, Eazy and Anna deserve much better than that."

"I know, I know…" he said once again defeated. I came around to hug him once again. The more time passed the more unsettling everything became. Tomorrow could be our last Christmas with the entire family.


	26. Girl meets Mr and Mrs Williamson

**Some one asked why so short? Shorter chapters = faster updates **

**Damon's POV….**

I guess it's hard to explain but have you ever had one of those moments where everything in you has just spilled out of you? That's the feeling I feel now. It's not exactly sadness or anger. It's not a simple emotion or a lone emotion but I feel helpless most of all.

That's not a feeling I feel. I'm Damon. I'm the best brother, the smartest kid in school, the heartbreaker, the troublemaker. I've always had some idea of who I am. There's always been some sort of label, but now I can't live up to anything. Everything has been spilled out of me. I'm lost…

There's some metaphorical twist as I follow Elena back home. In the midst of my temporary blindness, she is the only thing I can see because when all the dust clears I know she'll be there. They can't take her away and she's not running away.

When we finally get to my apartment, she parks out on the street while I enter the garage. I park quickly and get out of the car. I see her from a distance and wait for her. I need her now more than ever. She smiles very lightly as she sees me.

"You ready for reality?" she asks

I nod as I wrap my right arm around her shoulders. We both walk up the three flights of stairs.

**Christmas morning…**

I wake up early; some internal clock won't let me sleep past six in the morning. I called my Aunt yesterday. My father's funeral is tomorrow. She's planned, arranged and paid for everything. All we have to do is show up. Which is … good, I guess. One less stress on me, I was truly grateful for my Aunt. I don't think I could have handled one more thing.

The Social worker called moments after my Aunt. It was a woman; she's taking the kids after the funeral. My heart truly stopped for minute. I didn't hear whatever else she had to say. Elena had taken the phone from my hands when I froze. After her conservation with the social worker, Elena spared me the details of the inner workings of the system. We went about our normal day, choosing to ignore the world around us. The only ones that mattered were people in this apartment.

As I got off my bed, I noticed Jeremy on the floor. The gilberts had slept over. I smiled a little at knowing Elena was still in this apartment. She had slept in Anna's and Effy's room.

I "gently" nudged Jeremy awake. It was Christmas morning. Santa had come to town. Jeremy groaned so I "gently" nudged him awake again. He looked up at me in surprise, as if remembering how he had ended up in this apartment.

"Come on, we have to set up the presents before they wake up," I told him and quickly got up. Some part of him will always be scared of me and I liked it.

Jeremy went to take out the hidden presents from the closet, as I made my way to the girls' room. I knocked on their door quietly and nudged the door open. I could see Anna was still asleep but Elena's floor bed was empty. It struck me as strange.

I heard voices come from the living room so I left Anna and Effy.

"_Are you sure?" I heard_ _Jeremy whisper_

"_Well I'm just exploring one more option, it can't hurt," I heard in Elena's voice._

Elena was dressed and ready to step out by the time I got there.

"Where are you going?" I asked. She was supposed stay. Her Aunt was supposed to come later today to celebrate. Elena wasn't supposed to leave.

"I'm just going to grab some stuff from back home," she said fiddling with a button from her jacket.

"Let Jenna bring it," I disputed.

"I left your present in my hiding spot, she won't be able to find it nor do I want to tell her about my hiding spot," she claimed

She was lying. I knew it. Jeremy knew it.

"Just give it to me later," I replied. I didn't want her to leave.

"It'll be quick, I promise," she said with a quick peck on the cheek. She was out the door before I could fathom another thought.

**Elena's POV…**

I walked out the door as fast I could. I wasn't sure if I was doing the right thing. I wasn't even sure what I was doing.

_1489 Red Road Mystic Falls, Virginia. Mr. and Mrs. Williamson_

That's what I wrote down when I pretended to be Anna on the phone. The social worker had called Damon to flesh out the details but he couldn't stay on the phone with her. So I took the phone. She had told me that a recent family had applied for adoption in Mystic Falls. They were an older couple but they weren't adverse to older kids or siblings.

She suggested that this couple be the foster family or even the adoptive family. It sounded strange, so I didn't immediately tell Damon. I wanted to see the couple for myself first.

I got into the car and drove the five minutes to get to the house. I didn't recognize it though it had incredibly homey feeling to it. I was just going to check the house out before I went home to grab my presents.

I got out to take a peek in the house. It felt strange to do this at six in the morning like if I was doing something incredibly sneaky. I went to peek over into the kitchen window, when I came face to face with the woman of the house. Crap!

I quickly ducked but it was too late, she had seen me.

"Elena?" she asked when she walked out of the house, "What are you doing here so early?"

"Liz? You're Mrs. Williamson?" I asked in surprise

She laughed quietly. "Yeah, Elizabeth Williamson but it sounds way too formal for my tastes."

Big Mike came after her. "Elena? Damon?"

Footsteps came from behind me. I didn't have to guess who they belong to. Big mike had answered my question before I knew I had one.

"Elena, what's going on?" Damon asked

I smiled awkwardly.

"Merry Christmas, everybody," I said with a smile too wide.

…

I was at the end of the long winded story on why I was here, when I finally got to catch my breath. We were at their kitchen table and it was very surreal as I finished the story.

"So Karen, the social worker, thought it would be nice to keep the kids in their hometown," I said unable to look up at anybody. Everybody grew silent as the story came to an end. Big Mike was the one who broke the silence and I had never heard him so sincere.

"We've wanted kids for a long time now and… when we realized that Liz couldn't have any we opted for adoption. We told the agency that we didn't have any preferences. We just wanted kids… When we heard about Damon Senior, we had a long conversation about the possibility of adopting all three of them," Big Mike said and then looked at Liz.

Liz continued the story, "And we agreed that we couldn't think of better kids to adopt. So we made a call to the agency. We were the ones who spoke to Karen. We just wanted to make sure it was a possibility before we presented Damon the idea."

Everyone turned to look at Damon.

He looked up in surprise. His blue eyes seeming bigger than ever before.

I touched his hand lightly, "What do you think Damon?"


	27. THE END

**Damon's POV…**

She touched my hand lightly and said, "What do you think, Damon?"

I looked down at her hand over my hand. Her hand was small and slender with an olive complexion that contradicted my lighter skin. I focused on her hand because I didn't know how to respond. How could I respond? I wanted to scream, _Yes! _But then who was I? Why did I have this decision? I felt small under the weight of the decision.

I looked up to Mike and Liz. They looked hopeful. These were exactly the people I wanted to leave my brother and sisters with. They would have a stable home. They would have both a mom and a dad. And god they would be loved. Wholly. Unforgettably. Loved.

I turned to look at Elena. She looked at me with a titled head as if trying to decipher my unspoken thoughts. I cleared my throat before I spoke.

"I think…" I started without organizing my thoughts. Elena gently squeezed my hand to give me courage when I stopped.

I cleared my throat again. "Actually I know that you both would be amazing parents. If I could possibly choose… if I had the ability to choose then I wouldn't have it any other way."

**5 months later…**

**Elena's POV…**

They say high school years pass by fast and that those memories last forever and as I make my way through the crowd I completely agree. After I had dinner with my brother, Jenna and her fiancée (they're getting married in the summer), I made my way to the post-graduation party. It was at the Michaelson's mansion… of course.

Everybody was there. I waved hello to Bonnie who was signing yearbooks with a group of cheerleaders. They all waved back when Bonnie spotted me. Caroline was in the far corner, with guess who…. Niklaus. Niklaus had her trapped between his right hand his body. I didn't try waving hello to her, she seemed… busy.

I made my way to the kitchen and grabbed bottle of water as I made my rounds giving tons of hugs but looking for Him. When I found Anna, she was sitting comfortably on a couch and using my brother as a pillow.

"Hey Anna!" I yelled

She smiled back and waved for me to come over.

"Elena! Congratulations! " she beamed

"Thanks Anna, I was wondering…"

"He's upstairs somewhere… he got tired of the noise," she said with a laugh.

My brother nodded as an acknowledgment of my presence. I had brought him to the party but we went our separate ways quickly.

"Hey Elena, do you think I could have the keys? Anna has to be home by twelve," Jeremy asked

Anna giggled, "I tried moving my curfew but Dad says that rules are rules."

I smiled at her usage of 'Dad'. It took her sometime to get use to the word and no one pushed her into it. She didn't use it all the time, though every time I hear her use it, I see her face light up.

I pulled out Aunt Jenna's car keys and handed them to Jeremy. "I'll get a ride from Damon, tell Aunt Jenna I won't be too late."

I waved bye and made my way up the stairs. There was still a long line for the girl's bathroom. I walked past the girls and walked down the hall. Only one door was partially opened, so I tried that one first.

I knocked before I pushed the door open.

No one was in the room but I saw the balcony door ajar so I kept going. Damon was out at the balcony with his elbows placed on railing. He turned around when he heard me.

He smiled slightly. "You found me."

"It took some time. This mansion is huge," I said with a smile and shut the balcony door behind me.

I looked at him favorably. He no longer had purple shadows under his eyes. His hair was less disheveled but his smile, that signature Damon Salvatore smile was still the same.

"What were you looking at?" I asked as I made my way toward him.

He shrugged. "Nothing in particular, I was just thinking."

When I got close enough he tucked a lock of my hair and kissed me. It was gentle and simple.

"What you thinking about?" I asked

He smiled and kissed me again this time with a bit more urgency. I closed my eyes and got lost for the moment. When we let go each other, I had a strange feeling about the kiss. It felt desperate, like a kiss from the beginning of relationship when we weren't sure we were going to last.

I looked at him with a sad thought in my head. "That wasn't goodbye was it?" I asked almost in a whisper. He lifted my chin gently to look directly into my eyes.

"Possibilities… that's what I was thinking about," he answered

I took my chin back from his gentle grip and tried not think past this summer. Damon had gotten into some amazing schools. I had gotten into a few good ones. None of them matched. I hadn't had the courage to ask him which school he had chosen yet. I didn't want to think about it.

"What possibilities were you thinking about?" I asked as I looked out the balcony. He wrapped his arms around my waist and held me tight from behind.

"Well… if I decide to go Stanford then I won't have to endure cold weather but Columbia is closer to home so that's a plus," he said

I frowned at the thought of Stanford. It would be across the country and from what I've heard long distant relationships never worked.

"You haven't decided yet? And what happened to Harvard or Yale?" I asked not really wanting to talk about this right now.

He giggled in my ear. "Well I liked those too but… well I don't where you're going, yet… so I'm just waiting for you to make the decision between UC Berkeley or NYU."

I froze in place and my heart skipped a beat. "You're making your decision… based on where I go?" I asked disbelieving

He turned me around and held my face in his hands.

"I love you Elena and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Either school I pick will allow me to become an architect and I don't care if one has… smaller class sizes or a better teacher to student ratio. I want you."

I felt the tears start to form as I heard his words. I kissed him with same urgency that he had given me and then grabbed his face like he had held mine.

"And I love you and if you're going to follow me then I have no choice but to go NYU because I love you, Anna, Effy and Eazy," I answered him. He smiled at my decision and I let go of his face.

We held each other as we looked out toward the night. My head filled itself with ideas and all sorts of dreams. The night was full of possibilities but one thing remained constant in each one of my dreams and that was Damon by my side.

The End

* * *

**So this was my second fanfic and I'm still working on endings and consistency but I hope that each story I write gets better and better. Thank you all for reading up to this point. I especially want to thank the consistent reviewers who kept me motivated and inspired me. **

**I may write a college version with the same characters but I highly doubt it. I left myself the option but at this point I'm pretty worn out. If I never write a sequel then you'll always have Damon's last words, "I love you Elena and I want to spend the rest of my life with you"**


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